A Light in the Darkness Redux
by caruso2951
Summary: Months after the Fall of Beacon, Team RWBY has been scattered to the wind. When Yang, Weiss, and Ruby are brought together again, it is to hunt down a former teammate that has slid into darkness; carving path of destruction in her wake. Bumblebee with WhiteRose in the mix- rewrite of a previous fic
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **This is a rewrite of a fic that I released a few weeks ago; this time with a major story overhaul and a focus on the world of Remnant. This will be primarily a Bumblebee story with a White Rose element so expect romance at some point later in the fic; also expect some dark themes and a possible rating change depending on how much I can push the envelope. Updates will be probably be every week since I try to be one chapter ahead; though I do have another story in the works which will also be released soon. Please review so I know what you guys think; enjoy!**

Blake Belladonna cautiously made her way to the source of the light.

As she stalked in the darkness of the trees, she made sure to study her surroundings in case this was a trap.

She knew full well that the White Fang had tracked her to the Emerald Forest after their latest encounter a few days ago; forcing her into hiding. Though it was only grunts she had dealt with so far, it was only a matter of time before Adam himself joined the hunt and that was something that she just wasn't prepared for. Though she did her best to try and get ready for the inevitable encounter, mostly by killing Grimm haunting the remains of Beacon Academy, he was just too strong for her. It was only by chance that she had come across the patrol of White Fang elements with their being too many for her to deal with; thus she was forced to run. It was by luck that the ones she did get rid of had spare dust on them so that she could resupply herself; also raiding some of the stores at her former school. However, if this kept up she would have to risk eliminating another patrol in order not to run out.

It had been three months since the fall of Beacon and all Blake could do was run as far away as possible; trying to hide from her problems. From what snippets of information she had gathered, Vale was blaming Atlas for what had happened even though it was because of Cinder Fall and her lackeys that were responsible; as well as her former partner Adam and the White Fang. Vale had raised up a citizen army to defend its borders and recruited many of the Hunters and Huntresses to help in it's fight with the Grimm that were now within the kingdom's territory; though it was a uphill battle at best. Communications were still down between the kingdoms and there was too much mistrust to reestablish the network. She had not heard much on what had happened to her former teammates though she did know that were all back at their homes; recovering from the scars of that dark day. Blake knew that Team RWBY was now officially broken and it was more than likely that she had played a large part in that; having been the first to run away.

She still felt it was the right call though; she needed to run so that Adam couldn't finish what he had started. As much as she wanted to be with Yang and comfort her in losing her arm, effectively ruining her career as a huntress, Blake knew that staying away from her partner and her best friend was needed to protect her. Her heart ached for not being able to send a message explaining her reasons to the blonde; out of fear that Adam would use that against her. If his focus was solely on Blake then Yang was safe for the moment; living a happier life back in Patch where it lay far away from the troubles hounding Remnant. While she hoped that Yang would understand, it was more than likely that the blonde would believe that Blake had abandoned her; which was understandable given that she could not communicate with her. She just hoped that her friend would be smart and stay home; knowing that her crippled state could not protect her from the new horrors out there.

As for Ruby and Weiss, she hoped that they would do the same.

After circling the campsite for possible traps, she found that there was no one and slowly made her way towards it. As much as her instincts told her that something was off about all this, given that only a fool would camp in the middle of the woods where Grimm could be roaming, the desire to warm herself up was too great. It had been a while since she had felt the warmth of a fire, having been forced to hide in the shadows of the night when she rested, and Blake hoped that whoever created the fire would be friendly; or at least not the White Fang or any of her other enemies. Getting as close to the clearing as possible, which was strangely free of trees as if they had been cut down, she saw that it occupied by only one person. A human dressed in a pair of shorts with a blue shirt sat on a log facing the fire and she could see his eyes were closed; possibly sleeping though it mostly looked like he was meditating. Something was off about it given that there were no weapons in sight though he could have his weapon concealed like all Hunters; maybe it even being small enough that she just could not see it.

"Skulking about in the shadows like that is unbecoming of you Ms. Belladonna; why don't you come in the light so we can talk," the strange man suddenly said as he opened his eyes and smiled. Before she knew it, the young Faunus was instantly gone from her place in the woods to now standing in front of him on the other side of the fire.

"How did you do that?" Blake demanded with both alarm and shock, drawing her weapon and preparing for a possible ambush. There was a possibility that he was a hunter sent to track her down; having been hired by Adam to do so.

"That is inconsequential for the moment; what is important is that you hear what I have to say so sit down," the man commanded in a polite but firm voice. For some reason, Blake did so though she did it unconsciously and even before she realized it.

"Who are you?" Blake asked guardedly, her weapon still in her hand and ready to strike with need be in case this turned hostile. Even though the person looked human and normal, there was definitely something off and he did not even seem like a hunter.

"Another trivial question; what is important is that there is something that I can do for you and your current predicament," answered the mysterious individual with a predatory smile; which was both unnerving and disarming at the same time to Blake. She had the overwhelming urge to run but an inner voice suppressed it.

"I don't understand; how can you help me? You don't even know me besides my name," stated the Faunus as she sat down and stayed alert. This whole thing was mind boggling but she was now more than curious; as well as apprehensive.

"I know everything about you my dear; from you being orphaned at a very young age to your time in the White Fang as well as what happened during your enrollment at Beacon Academy. I also know what happened after with you running away and abandoning your team," answered the man with a smirk that rubbed Blake all the wrong way; no pun intended. She was now wondering if he was a bounty hunter though his attire didn't suggest that; unless it was deliberately designed that way to give her a false sense of safety.

"I didn't abandon them; I am trying to protect them from my past. If you really know me so well then you know all about Adam Taurus and what he is capable of," objected the other woman with intense fervor. She was tired of the idea of that she had just left her friends without a good reason; though a voice in the back of her mid also made the accusation.

"Excuses; you ran and when Yang Xiao Long needed you the most. I am not here to condemn you but saying that you ran just to protect her is a lie; even if you believe it," the individual pointed out rather firmly and as if it were a fact. While Blake was prepared to argue his words, she felt they were a distraction from why he was here.

"Just what do you want?" Blake asked with a heavy sigh in her voice. The campfire was going to draw people here soon or later; whether they be White Fang or Grimm.

"Walk with me," the man commanded, suddenly standing up and walking into the trees. Before she even thought about it, the teen started to follow him into the darkness.

He was rather easy to follow and it almost seemed that the trees parted in an effort to get out of his way; even though Blake had to go around them. There was something unsettling about the individual and his presence conveyed a coldness which seemed to affect the environment around them. The silence in the woods seemed to continue and it disturbed Blake to no end on how she couldn't hear a single creature; even hearing an echo in her steps. It was then that the teen noticed that the trees were now different; their leaves gone and their branches dead. The ground was free of green grass and only dead earth remained; feeling rough against her feet. There was no way that they were in the Emerald Woods anymore and she also knew they had only traveled for a few minutes; making her wonder if this was all a dream. Everything felt real enough though and she hurried forward to catch up with the man as they reached a clearing.

"Where are we?" Blake asked as she stared at what awaited them once they moved past the tree line. She could only stare at wonderment at the scene in front of her and if it weren't Remnant's broken moon above, she'd think she was on another planet.

What lay before them was a large stone building though more of a ruin now; evident by the crumbling rock of the structure. Shaped like a pyramid and surrounded by large columns, two of which had toppled over, the tip was gone and there were holes on the sides. A single walkway led up to the entrance and Blake could make out symbols overlooking it, though she couldn't know for sure until she got a closer look. There was a courtyard of sorts though the various broken stones didn't seem to indicate what they once had been; though she could tell they might have been stone seats. All around was sand and dust; not a single thing alive to be seen which gave off an eerie feeling. In all her studies as well as travels, Blake had never seen such a structure and wondered how soothing like this could evade explorers and other curious beings; especially since it was obviously built by a past civilization. The history of Remnant was full of them; lost in the sands of time.

"Along time ago, before your world's moon lay broken, there was a war. An intense war that devastated many and left cities in ruin. That temple was once ruled by a faction of that particular war; a faction that fell in the final days of the conflict," the mysterious individual answered with a general lack of emotion in his voice. The way he spoke, it almost seemed to Blake that he had witnessed that war firsthand.

"Why are you showing me this? How can such a structure be missed by anyone in the Kingdoms?" the teen asked again; even more curious now. Granted there were still large parts of the planet inaccessible because of the Grimm but someone would have at least come across this by now.

"Because Ms. Belladonna, inside that structure lies a power that had long been forgotten over eons; deliberately hidden by beings older than your civilization," he answered with a smirk that sent chills down her spine. He once again began walking with her trying to keep up; heading towards the abandoned structure.

"And you are offering me this power?" Blake inquired though more as a statement than an actual question. The logical part of her brain was telling her that something was wrong about all this but it was drowned out by her curiosity.

"Yes; though it is not for free. With this power, you have to do something for me," the individual simply said as they strolled into the courtyard. Blake wasn't surprised that there was a price since she knew full well that everything in life required some sort of payment.

"What is it? I am not going to hurt any innocents," the teen pressed firmly; deciding to set a line that she would not cross. She had read enough fantasy books to have some idea of where this was possibly going.

"No my dear; you are in luck, what I want just happens to fall in line with your needs," the man stated with a smirk as he suddenly stopped to look at her. Blake had to step back slightly as she got a good look at his eyes; they were pure black.

"You see," he continued as he once again headed towards the entrance of the building, "Adam Taurus is just a pawn in a game along with Cinder Fall; they happen to be working for someone who was manipulating things behind the scenes. By eliminating this person, you happen to ensure that no one like Adam and Cinder threaten things again." As he finished talking, they had entered the ruin where they came across a surprisingly intact central hub.

It was cold inside the room and the air gave a smell of decay as well as if something were dead somewhere. There wasn't a soul in sight, not surprising since it appeared that none had been here in a very long time, and there was shocking lack of debris anywhere unlike outside. It took only a few seconds for Blake to see that there was a pedestal in the center of the room with a crystal on it; her Faunus eyes able to pierce the darkness. The floor seemed to dip around the pedestal and the teen was surprised that there was a pool of some sort of liquid surrounding the object; having no idea how deep it was. The walls contained various symbols and even pictures depicting various scenes; mostly of figures fighting one another or some sort of large monster. The crystal itself looked to be the shape of a small heart and almost appeared to be floating on the pedestal; it also illuminated a dark red color that gave off a small light that reflected off the liquid on the ground.

"What is that?" Blake asked in awe and something seemed to draw her towards the crystal; almost calling to her. The man once again smirked as he became pleased by the Faunus being tempted by the power in the room.

"That is a Blood Gem and it will give you all the power you need to destroy your enemies. Be warned however, it will also create a bloodlust that you must learn to control or you will lose yourself to the violence," With that, he was gone and left Blake alone in the abandoned ruin before she could ask him to specify.

Blake must have stood there for a while and contemplated on what she was going to do with her thoughts a mess. There was a rather loud voice in the back of her mind telling her that she should just walk away and leave the stone where it was; to find another way to solve the problem of Adam and the White Fang. However, he was just too strong for her as well as Cinder Fall; both of them being out of her league. She was surprised to learn that there was someone guiding their actions and really wished the man had elaborated a bit more before he had vanished; especially for why he wanted that person dead. Blake had come to the conclusion that the man was definitely not someone with good intentions; making the situation she was in even more muddled than it already was. She looked over at the crystal again and once again, she was tempted and the thought of her friends was enough to consider walking over to grab it. She had run to try and protect them, especially Yang, and knew it was only a matter of time before they were swept up in whatever dark plot their enemies were initiating.

With that thought, Blake made her decision walked towards the crystal.

She got up to the pool of the strange liquid and to her horror, she saw that it was blood; having no clue how it could still be here after all this time. Taking a deep sigh, Blake stepped into the pool and cringed; seeing no other way through it since the leap would still take her into it given that part of the pedestal was submerged on closer inspection. Wading into the blood, she found that it went rather deep and went to her ankle and took another step; finding that it was the same with the other foot. Now fully in, she slowly took large steps; the blood eerily splashing as she brought her foot up. It was rather silly when she thought about it since her clothes were already now messed up, having not cleaned them in a while, but them being covered in blood was something else. After a minute, she was right in front of the pedestal and Blake reached out and took the crystal in her hands. The air seemed to become still and the sudden silence put her on edge.

A few seconds later, the crystal in her hands started to glow a bright red and became hot against her skin. Blake tried to drop it but couldn't and she cried out in pain as it became hotter and hotter. Around her, the blood stirred and looked to gather around her, climbing up her body as if it were alive. She tried to run and the resistance caused her to move at a crawl to where she could no longer move. Fear gripped Blake's heart as her desperate attempt to drop the crystal was useless; still burning her hand and somehow forcing her to grip the jewel even more. As the blood climbed higher up her body, the teen lost her balance and fell backwards into the pool; causing her to scream out in terror. She thrashed about in order to try and get up but as the blood covered her head, all she could do was choke as the red liquid filled her mouth. Once she was fully submerged and her thoughts going to her friends since she thought this was the end, all that could be seen in the pool was the red glow of the Blood Gem.

Outside and looking down from the Cliffside, the mysterious man waited for something to happen.

"Was that wise My Lord? A power such as that could be a threat in the hands of someone like that who is not part of your grace," stated an armored figure in a deep tone who stood behind the mysterious man who had brought Blake to this place. Covered from head to in a dark-colored armor with a large blade sheathed on his back, he bowed his head in reverence.

"It is of no consequence; she poses no threat to me whatsoever and is now a useful tool to deal with Salem for good," the man replied with a wave of his hand. As far as he was concerned, everything was going according to plan.

"I could deal with Salem now My Lord; bring her to heel easily," the Knight said in a determined tone. While the Queen of the Grimm was strong, she was nothing to a servant of the Abyss and the Darkness.

"A lesson must be taught so that the others understand what happens to those who defy me; Ms. Belladonna will be that lesson," the individual said with a smirk as he looked down and watched the Faunus teen emerge from the ruin with the Blood Gem in her hands. She was completely clean of the red liquid and headed away from the place; filled with a sudden energy.

And an unwavering darkness in her heart.

 **Please Read and Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **I want to thank all those who have begun to follow this story and hope you continue to do so; I also hope for a few reviews for this chapter as well and any opinion would be nice though I appreciate constructive criticism. I do want to say that since we are unsure of Taiyang's fighting style currently, I took a few liberties in an effort to do something different given that he might have trained Yang how to fight; let me know what you think and if more detail is needed.**

Yang got up from the bed and stretched.

Happy that she didn't break anything because of her new augmented arm, she headed to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

The prosthetic arm itself was rather new and had only become a part of her body a few weeks ago; having had it attached in town. While it wasn't sophisticated as the ones produced in Atlas that would allow for combat, it still allowed her to move about her daily life. When she sparred with her father, she only used her other arm to fight; not wanting to risk the metal appendage since it had cost quite a bit. Tai had dipped into the savings just so that his older daughter could have some normalcy in her life given that she was no longer a student at Beacon; which was still infested by Grimm. While her mood was nowhere near that of before her crippled state came into being, the teen was at least getting out of her room and doing things around the house. She could also now defend herself though what she could do was limited; as proven by the sparring matches themselves. Yang had pushed herself to the limit and knew that she could no longer live her dream; which made her angry.

In the nine months since the fall of Beacon, the world had become a gloomier place. While it was reported that teams of Hunters and Huntresses raided the school on many occasions to clear out the monsters, they were only mildly successful. Thus the Vale Council had decided that they would move the staff of the academy into the city itself to act as a local militia of sorts. Atlas had offered support but Vale had rejected it, enraged by what had happened to lead to all of this misery. Ozpin was still missing and the Grimm were now getting bold in their attacks; even rumored to be attacking the other two kingdoms. Yang had watched a pair of commentators on the news suggest that it as if someone were guiding the beasts; which wasn't far off given that Cinder Fall had been doing it during the battle. While there were only scattered packs of baewolves around Patch and they had been acting normal so far, the town was still on alert and Signal Academy's staff were patrolling a bit more; even traveling in bigger groups. While Tai had offered his daughter a place on the patrols, Yang had refused.

Truthfully, she now felt useless given her crippled state; though she could still fight to some degree. The teen also felt lonely with Ruby, Weiss, and even Blake no longer by her side; only receiving a few letters from her sister to let her and her father know she was alright. Yang had heard that Uncle Qrow was making sure that Ruby was staying safe by watching from a distance; which was some reassurance though her father wanted the red-cloaked teen home. It angered the blonde that her sister was out there doing the fighting by herself even though the rest of Team JPNR was with her; feeling that it should be Team RWBY instead. However with Weiss basically imprisoned by her father back in Atlas and Blake nowhere to be found, it was pretty much given that her team was now dissolved. Yang couldn't help but feel enraged because of that and had to keep her anger under control. She had already broken a few things around the house and even Zwei was a little hesitant to come around her at this point; which kind of hurt her since he as well as her father was the only ones left for her.

After she climbed out of the bed, she went into the bathroom for a shower; only being in there for a few minutes. In her depressed state, the blonde never really left the house much except to get supplies from town or to spar a bit; so that she didn't see the need to make herself presentable. Being a Huntress was all that she had ever wanted to be and that fateful night had changed all that; now making her wonder what she was going to do now. One part of her Ember Celica lay on the dresser, with the other part back at Beacon somewhere, and she hadn't worn it even when she sparred with her father; though he often suggested that she do so. After she was done in the bathroom, Yang headed into the kitchen to make something for breakfast; though it was probably her usual of eggs with toast. Even when she had two arms, the blonde had been a pretty good cook but with her father out most of the time now and Ruby gone; there was just no point to making fancy meals.

She was sitting at the table eating when her father, Taiyang Xiao Long, stepped into the house through the back door.

"Morning honey; how're you feeling?" the older man asked as he placed his gauntlets on the kitchen counter. As a skilled fighter, he used them for close combat though they could spew lightning for ranged attacks.

"Fine," was all that the blonde said as she chewed her food, reading an old magazine and not bothering to glance at her father. Taiyang frowned and sighed, wishing that there was some way to make her happy again.

"So I will need some help at Signal here pretty soon; especially with my increased workload. I talked to the Principle and he gave his permission to allow me to bring on an Teacher's Assistant; thus I thought of you," stated the older man in chipper tone and smiling down at his daughter. His smile faded when she just shrugged and continued reading, not bothering to say anything; causing him to sit down across from his daughter and take the magazine to get her attention.

"I was reading that," Yang told her father, sounding annoyed and giving him a slight glare as she chewed. She swallowed slowly when she saw the serious look on his face; which meant that he was in full on parent mode now.

"I know you're depressed and feel useless but this has to stop. You are still young and have future whether you believe it or not," her father chided her but in a gentle way. While he could feel for his oldest daughter, Taiyang knew that if he didn't do something soon, his daughter would waste away before his eyes.

"And what would that be dad? All I wanted to be my whole life was a Huntress and that got stolen from me. I fail to see what kind of bright future you think I have," Yang stated sarcastically as she rose of her chair violently and prepared to leave the room. Before she could do so however, her father grabbed her by her prosthetic hand and made her face him.

"I am not going to watch you slide into something that resembles your Uncle Qrow; I've lost too many people in my life and you will not be the next one so it's time to shape up," ordered her father loudly with as much authority as he could muster. While a part of him knew he was a bit too harsh, he fully knew that it was the right thing to do.

Yang was about to respond when there was a loud knock at the front door, interrupting the both of them before things turned ugly. Puzzled, Taiyang rose from his chair along with his daughter and they both headed to the front of the house to see who it was. Given that the house was a bit isolated from the rest of the village, the idea of a neighbor coming over for a cup of milk was out of the question; not to mention complaining about the noise level. Heading past the living room, the older man opened the door wide to see a trio of people on his porch; a silver-haired woman with two armored solders to be exact. Taiyang recognized that they were from the Atlas military and became both alarmed as well as alert since there was no need for them to be here; neither the father nor daughter had any dealings with that particular kingdom. There was a sudden feeling of dread when it occurred to him that they might be here because of Ruby; hoping that wasn't the case since her letters had been cryptic on her location.

"Mr. Taiyang Xiao Long and Ms. Yang Xiao Long; I am Specialist Winter Schnee of the Atlas Military and I require your time," said the woman in a crisp manner with her hands clasped behind her back. The two solders behind her had their weapons at their backsides and stood at attention; their faces impassive.

"And what is an Atlas Specialist doing here in Patch? I've done nothing against the Kingdom unless this is about Qrow or my daughter Ruby," Taiyang told her sternly; hoping neither was the case though he noted the twitch Winter made with her face at the mention of his old teammate. He knew the Specialist's name from Qrow, who had termed her the Ice Queen, and also knew she was one of General Ironwood's people.

"Did you say Schnee? Are you Weiss's sister?" Yang asked the woman from her place at the back of her father; also knowing the name. While she never met the woman personally, her teammate Weiss spoke of her often; with an admiration that the blonde never saw before.

"Yes, I am Weiss's sister and she has mentioned you a number of times during our lunches. I am here though for you and have been ordered by General Ironwood to bring you to Atlas," informed the woman firmly while addressing Yang as if it were an order, causing Taiyang to narrow his eyes at her. He had wished he had grabbed his gauntlets before he had answered the door because there was a feeling that there could be a potential fight here in a minute.

"Why do you want Yang? She has done nothing to the Kingdom and does not warrant being taken anywhere," the older man said to the woman; matching the Specialist's firmness with his own. The father wasn't about to let anyone take his daughter anywhere; especially to another kingdom.

"That is classified; I was ordered to bring your daughter directly to General Ironwood as well as the rest of Team RWBY," Winter simply said and she stared into Taiyang's eyes while her hand went to her weapon. Given that this was Qrow's family, she knew that she had to be prepared for a possible fight; thus why she was sent specifically.

"Wait, you said the rest of Team RWBY was being gathered as well? Then that means Ruby will be there too dad," Yang said to her father with an enthusiasm not heard by the older man in months. While he was not happy about his daughter being forced to go, knowing Ruby would be there was enough to placate him.

"If my daughters are being taken there, then I am going as well. I will not stand by and let them be interrogated by Atlas without their father," Taiyang voiced to Winter in a manner that left no room for debate. Even if he had to physically make his point clear to the young woman, he was going to Atlas with Yang.

"That was considered and permitted by the General in advance; my transport lays not too far from here and time is of the essence," Winter said with a motion of her head. The two stepped out to see a large Atlas military craft indeed not too far away from the house; wondering how they could have missed hearing it arrive in the first place.

"We'll grab our things; it will be a few minutes," the older man said as he then slammed the door in Winter's face; causing her to glare. Yang noticed the smirk on her father's face and simply rolled her eyes before heading to grab her duffle bag from her room.

"What are we going to do with Zwei?" the blonde asked a few minutes later with her bag over her shoulder and changed into her usual attire; which she hadn't worn in almost a year. For some reason, one which she couldn't explain, her Ember Celica was inside the bag along with spare rounds; along with spare clothing for the trip.

"We'll take him with us; there's no one who can watch him right now," Taiyang answered as he made sure everything was okay before they left the house. Once everything was secure and with his own bag over his shoulder, the two and the dog headed outside where the tri of soldiers laid waiting.

Winter looked at the dog as they approached and her eyebrow rose ever so slightly. Expecting protest from the woman as she approached, he was caught by surprise when the Specialist bent over to give Zwei a pat on the head and smile forming on her face. Yang remembered how giddy Weiss got when the dog had stayed with them before their Mountain Glenn mission and figured that the Schnee must have a soft spot for dogs; chuckling slightly. It was rather comforting to the blonde that both Weisss and her sister were not completely cold; especially when it came to animals. Winter heard the chuckle and she rose up suddenly with her face hardening again; turning her back to the three and leading them to the ramp on the back of the transport. Walking up it, the ramp closed behind them and the craft began to rise into the air; heading away from the house.

On the inside, the transport was rather spacious with a large cargo hold that had a few seats for them to sit in. There were a few more soldiers inside and they were manning the weapon pods that lay in various spots of the craft; for protection against possible threats. There was a door that led to the front, which was assumed to be the pilot's cabin, and it was guarded by a pair of armored soldiers. There was a small bathroom located towards the front of the craft; which was a good thing since the flight to Atlas was going to be quite long. While they had grabbed some snacks for the trip, especially dog food for Zwei, they wondered if they would be fed some real food at some point. Taiyang assumed that they would probably have to be given military rations at some point and was dreading it; remembering the last time he were cursed with the stuff back in the days he was teamed with Summer, Raven, and Qrow for missions. While Yang took a seat by the small window on the side of the craft, Zewi sat next to her with the older man seated on the other end.

"How is Weiss? I know she sent me a letter but I never got around to responding," Yang said to Winter; who sat across from the three. She regretted not writing back but had been too depressed at the time and tossed the letter; not even bothering to read it.

"She is fine; my father has placed her in charge of a department of the company so that she can be better acquainted with her legacy," Winter answered and Yang's father sensed a bitterness in her tone though the young woman his it well. He had heard that Weiss was the official heir to the Schnee name and always found that odd since she was second daughter; thus he wondered if Winter was jealous of that fact.

"That's cool; I guess. Is she still hunting?" inquired the blonde out of curiosity; wondering if that was in the letter. From what little she had heard about the Battle of Beacon, her teammate had finally learned to use her semblance.

"No though I do my best to make sure that she stays in shape; our father believes that Weiss is better suited to handle the needs of Schnee Dust Company than to spend time hunting," stated the young woman and Yang's father definitely heard the anger in her voice that time. It seemed that the Specialist wasn't happy with what her father was doing to her sister; which caused him to respect Winter a bit.

"Well I am glad I will get to see her; along with my sister. Where did you guys find her?" Yang asked the woman, wondering how Atlas found Ruby. Her father was also curious since he had been wondering that for months; worried for his youngest daughter.

"From what I understand, she was located in Haven and is being escorted to Atlas along with your uncle," the woman answered and noted the dark look that appeared on Taiyang's face after she spoke the words. While she knew that Qrow and Taiyang had been former teammates as well as that Yang was the daughter of Qrow's sister, she wasn't sure what the exact relationship was in the family right now.

"Is that so," said the father with obvious anger in his voice. He was going to have some words with Qrow when they met up in Atlas; especially when he had instructed the man to bring his daughter home once she had been found.

"What about Blake? Will she be there as well?" Yang asked again, not sure if she was ready to face her partner. She did have questions though and their confrontation had to happen for some closure.

"I don't have the liberty to speak about that; you will have to wait until we get to Atlas for the answer to that," said the woman cryptically and Yang became puzzled by that; looking at her father. The man shrugged though he also appeared puzzled as well.

With Winter becoming silent, all Yang could do was wonder.

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	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **I want to thank all those who continue to read this story and are following it. If you have any issues about this fic, just leave me a review and I will try to address it the best I can though not if it is a simple flame. I will be introducing another OC in the next few chapters but he will be a supporting character only and not central to the fic; this is a Bumblebee and WhiteRose story which is the primary focus.**

Yang woke up right before they landed.

It wasn't the fact that the transport was slowing down that caused her to wake but the sudden chill in the air.

While Yang had never been to Atlas before, she knew that the entire Kingdom was practically encased in eternal winter; due to it being so north. Looking out the window, she could see the snow covered ground as well as the mountains that once used to be volcanos at some point in time. It was only after a minute that she got to get a good look at the kingdom itself; with its towers of metal in the center of a massive city complex; surrounded by a series of smaller mountains that acted as a good defensive barrier against enemies. The first settlers of the kingdom had discovered the large valley and utilized this barrier against the Grimm. They also had managed to use the vast deposits of dust with in the surrounding environment to build up the technologically advance civilization it had boasted. While Grimm still roamed the countryside and harassed the small farms within the country, they couldn't get close to the actual city of Atlas itself without being blown away by its defenses; evident as they passed some pretty impressive gun emplacements.

"Have either of you ever been to Atlas before?" Winter asked from her place across from the father and daughter; bemused by Yang's sudden attitude. The blonde almost looked like she was dazzled by the impressive sight of the city.

"A few times when I was still at Beacon; too much metal for my tastes," Taiyang stated with a simple wave of the hand and had the opposite viewpoint of his daughter. Qrow had even less things to say about the Kingdom; which he wasn't going to repeat here.

"I am sorry that my kingdom's advancement is not suited for your tastes; I guess it is a little much for someone from a more simple place," stated the silver-haired woman with a slight sneer as well as sarcasm in her voice. It was apparent that she was angry though Yang was too focused on the scene outside to notice.

"Where are we heading exactly?" the blonde asked before her father and chaperone got into a fight here in the small craft. She noticed that they were heading towards one of the larger towers in the center of the city.

"To General Ironwood's office at the Atlas Military Command; which lies in the center of the city," Winter answered while still glaring at the older man in front of her; who met her glare with one of his own. He wasn't sure why he was suddenly so rude, always preferring to be the exact opposite of Qrow, and it disturbed him slightly; knowing that Summer would never approve.

"And Ruby will be there?" Taiyang inquired, making it apparent that nothing else would be unacceptable. Winter nodded but bit back the smirk on what would be an amusing family reunion; hoping to see Qrow knocked down a peg or two.

As the transport landed at the base of the military headquarters, Yang could clearly see that it was more like a small city within a city than anything else; with the towers directly in the center in various sizes. From her window, the blonde could see what appeared to be not only barracks and other military buildings but what appeared to be dorms as well; for the students planning to be hunters. The tarmac they were touching down on had fighter craft as well as a few dreadnoughts; looking to be resupplied though there appeared to be none in the sky. From what little news she actually watched, the Atlas Airforce had taken a rather large hit at the Battle of Beacon thus the kingdom was hording its remaining warships in an effort to better protect itself in case the Grimm attacked; or even the White Fang. There were Faunus living in Atlas and even members of the political class; thus she wondered how they were coping.

Already, she could see other teens like herself jogging while in groups with their instructors leading them on; which never happened back at Beacon. The ground was clear of snow and everything looked so organized with the buildings lined perfectly in sync as well as the same pattern; The students themselves were so covered up that it almost made her realize she was underdressed; though she could never see herself in all that grey. It always made her wonder how Weiss managed to pursued her father to send her to Beacon rather than the Atlas Academy; especially since it appeared up her alley. In the last few months, Yang had regretted not talking to her silver-haired teammate a little more; especially since she only knew the basics about Weiss in the first place. It wasn't until the Vytal Festival that she even knew that there was another Schnee; with only Ruby having met her. She did know that her Uncle Qrow didn't get along with Winter and sensed that there was some history there; though she never got around to asking what. Maybe she would be able to find out once the family came together again; once things settled down. To say Yang was angry at Ruby was saying it mildly; though most of her rage was still at Blake.

The cold hit Yang as she disembarked along with her father; forcing her to use her aura to warm herself. Looking over at her father, she assumed he was doing the same thing since he wasn't shivering as well; though his clothing was a bit more modest than hers. She noticed that he had his gauntlets on though they were unbound from his hands; he also was more alert than she expected as if he were expecting a fight. When she built her Ember Celica, Yang had mimicked her father's weapon though she opted for the fire blasts than his elemental variety. It was Taiyang who had taught the blonde how to fight, once he had picked himself up after Summer's loss, and provided the money to send Yang to Beacon; Ruby's tuition had come from Ozpin as a sort of scholarship which helped greatly. While her remaining gauntlet was in her bag, she wondered if she should have equipped it though she hadn't used it in months. She could still fight to some degree with it but felt that something would be off; with its other half practically lost. Taiyang had suggested building a replacement but the blonde just couldn't bring herself to do it; especially with it having to go over a prosthetic arm that couldn't really be used to fight in the first place.

They followed Winter through what appeared to be the plaza; connecting all the various buildings from one another. While they walked, Yang could see students giving her looks; the females mortified by the lack of clothing she wore while the guys just ogled; causing her to smirk at them. Taiyang noticed that and wished he could have persuaded his daughter to dress with a bit more; sighing as he glared at a few of the boys. One thing that was noticed was a lack of the metal troops Atlas had only recently added to their military; only seeing human guards armed to the teeth. While the older man had become out of contact with those who were in the know on world events, he still had a few fellow teachers who did listen to rumors and had relayed them during the various gatherings in the teacher's lounge. From what he understood, the kingdom had recalled the entire line until the bugs could be worked out of the system; so no one could turn them against their operators again. That had forced Atlas to recall many of their non-active forces from civilian life in order to bolster their forces.

Once they had passed the central plaza, they walked inside the heavily guarded central tower to a mostly empty main hall. Taiyang had been in here before and wasn't surprised by the lack of change; seeing that it still had the same plaster-colored walls with grey tile. There were a few cameras lining the high walls and there was a receptionist desk facing the main entrance; with a single occupant protected by some pretty thick glass. Taking a right before the reception desk, Winter pulled out a keycard and swiped it at one of the security terminals next to another guarded door. She then activated her semblance and a small glyph appeared her backside; which caused the light of the terminal to go green. The door opened and she led the duo into what appeared to be an elevator; leaving their armed escort behind. While a little cramped, there was enough space so that Winter could be near the terminal; pressing a few buttons. The door closed and they could feel the sudden movement as the elevator began to rise. While being in these things a number of times, Taiyang was glad that there was a lack of elevator music given it would have been probably military in nature.

After a few minutes of silence, they arrived at their destination with the doors opening to a familiar sight.

"Dad, Yang?" said a voice from the front of them and both of them were greeted by the sight of Ruby Rose rising from a chair in a small reception area. Matching the makeup downstairs though a bit smaller, there was a guard at every corner of the room with a secretary manning a desk in front of a pair of double doors.

"Ruby!" Yang cried out and the younger sister was hugging her, leaving a small scattering of rose pedals in her wake. While the two sisters hugged one another, Taiyang saw that Qrow was still seated though he seemed on edge once the duo had shown up.

"So good to see you; I am glad that they brought you," Ruby told her sister as they broke apart and looked at one another. She genuinely looked had to see the blonde though she briefly frowned at the new metal appendage where the stump was.

Yang noticed that her sister looked a little different than the last time they were together all those months ago. For one thing, Ruby had gotten rid of her attire, except the red cloak, and went for a more mature look; though the color scheme remained the same. The skirt was a bit shorter, though not as shorts as Yang would have gone, and the corset looked a little tighter; though Yang wondered if her sister had filled out a bit more. Ruby also looked an inch or two taller; almost at the blonde's height now. Her hair was longer as well and for a brief moment, Yang was reminded of Summer; which Taiyang also noticed as well. Given the grip of the hug they just shared, the younger sister had some serious muscle on her now and it was obvious that she had been fighting; though the blonde could only speculate on who or even what. At her side was her Crescent Rose and that appeared to be the same; though Ruby probably tinkered with it like she always did. After giving his daughter a hug and whispering that he had missed her, Taiyang turned his attention to Qrow; who had then risen from his seat.

From her place by the secretary's desk, Winter watched the scene while trying to keep her face neutral.

"Hey Tai," Qrow greeted though he suspected what was probably going to happen next as the blonde man faced him. He was still caught off guard when Taiyang suddenly swung his right fist and sent Qrow to the floor.

"Dad?! What the Hell?!" Yang yelled as she and Ruby could only stare at what just happened; both in shock. Even Winter was surprised though she did her best to keep it off her face as she motioned with her hand for the guards to remain as they were.

"I guess I deserved that a little," Qrow said as he raised his left hand to stop his nieces from coming over and used the other to rub his jaw. If it weren't for him having his aura raised, he had no doubt it would have been broken.

"You better believe it; you were supposed to bring her home, not encourage her to be out there by herself," Taiyang stated angrily as he extended his hand to help his former teammate up; though it was more than tempting to leave him on the ground. Ruby looked confused until the words sunk in and she became aware of what her uncle was supposed to do.

"I wasn't by myself dad; Jaune, Nora, and Red were with me all the way as well as Uncle Qrow. I couldn't just stand by and watch Cinder and her people destroy the world without doing something," Ruby retorted at her father; becoming angry at the older man. This was why she left a note since she knew he would never had let her go in the first place.

"I would have been less concerned if you were older and a full-fledged Huntress but you are only sixteen and still have a lot to learn. I had hoped to hide the fact that only the Grimm were out there as the only monsters that had to be fought; but you learned the harsh truth that there are monsters that walk on two legs as well," her father countered and there was genuine sadness in his voice as well as on his face. Ruby was taken aback slightly but she was still angry and pressed the issue with Taiyang despite the look Qrow was giving to not to.

"I am a Huntress and I can fight; I may be still young but I have been training every day to become better," the young teen returned with her fists clenched; staring at her father in anger as well as hurt. It bothered her that he didn't have confidence in her to be able to do what needed to be done.

"I know that but you have to understand Ruby that you are not invincible; you can't just go out there alone and expect to simply rely on those who are also not fully trained as well. And I do have confidence in you honey; but you have to realize that you are still in training not to mention the fact that you left without even discussing your plans," Taiyang said a bit more gently as he walked over to his daughter and placed his hands on her shoulders. Her anger smoldered slightly but she was still upset.

"Not to mention leaving us as well," Yang said with her head down in almost a whisper and which the tone sounded hurtful ; entering the conversation for the first time. While she had been happy to see her sister, the blonde was also angry about how Ruby had just left without even telling her.

"Yang," Ruby said as she took a step towards her sister and frowned; realizing that she was upset. It was rare to hear the blonde use that tone and she was about to comfort the older teen when the elevator doors opened again revealing a pair of new arrivals.

It was Weiss with an older man next to her; causing Winter to narrow her eyes despite being glad to see her sister.

"Weiss!" Ruby greeted; happy to see her partner in the first time in months. She used her semblance to wisk herself at the silver-haired teen and wrapped her arms around her; leaving more rose pedals in her wake.

"Ruby," Weiss greeted coolly, pushing the younger teen away and sounding upset; which caused Ruby to be confused. The way that she was looking at her, the sixteen year old concluded that her partner was definitely mad at her.

"I see this is your partner at Beacon?" asked the older man; who looked to be the oldest in the room. He was dressed in a grey business suited and had a stern look upon his face; also carrying himself as someone with authority.

"Yes father; this is Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long, my former teammates at Beacon Academy," answered Weiss in almost a subservient way. Winter seemed to suddenly become angry at this; which was noticed by both Qrow and Taiyang.

"What do you mean former teammates?" the red-cloaked teen asked with a somewhat hurtful tone. She became upset on how Weiss was treating her so coldly; especially given how she felt about her partner.

"Well I thought you were now leading Jaune, Ren, and Nora now; it's apparent to me that they are your team now," Weiss stated in both an angry and upsetting tone of voice straight at Ruby; as if she were facing her alone. The other teen stepped back and now understood on why her friend was upset; wanting to comfort her.

"This is a trivial matter Weiss; as Heir-apparent to our legacy, you will no longer associate with these adolescents and instead focus on what is important," Morgan Schnee ordered darkly and full of arrogance; slightly glaring at his older daughter; who just stared back at him impassively though she had a dark look to her eyes. Qrow raised his eyebrows and concluded that there was more going on here than appeared; also understanding why Weiss was the heir despite Winter being the older sister.

"Excuse me?" Taiyang said, taking a step towards the older man while sounding very offended by Morgan's words. Not only was he getting angry by how the elder Schnee was treating Weiss, having a bad feeling given her being submissiveness, but did not like how he was looking at his daughters in disgust.

"You're excused," Morgan said offhandedly with a wave of his hand; not caring if the other father was offended. As he was taking out his scroll to look at something, he didn't notice that Taiyang had suddenly activated his gauntlets.

Before Qrow could stop him, the blonde man took a step towards Morgan.

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	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **I continue to thank all those who are following this story and continue to do so. Keep in mind that this is my first fic so any advice is welcomed along with your reviews. I do have another fic in the works involving a White Rose plotline and hope to have it up soon.**

Luckily, General Ironwood arrived before something violent happened.

Noting on how Winter suddenly became alert as well as Qrow putting himself between Taiyang and Morgan Schnee, it was apparent that he prevented something bad.

"I want to thank you all for coming; I know a few of you came a pretty long distance and it's much appreciated," General Ironwood told his guests while smiling pleasantly though he ignored the eye roll coming from Qrow. Dressed in full uniform, his hands were clasped behind his back while keeping his face impassive.

"What's going on Jimmy? Why'd you drag all of us here?" Qrow asked as he took a step towards the General. He was still keeping an eye on his teammate in case he made a move towards papa Schnee; which would cause a headache down the road.

"It wasn't by choice; there has been a complication and one of my colleague's requested the members of Team RWBY to attend a special meeting here in Atlas," informed Ironwood and it sounded like the military officer was tired. It was understandable given the events of the last few months.

While Qrow didn't know all the details, he had heard from a few reliable sources that Ironwood had just survived an attempt by his rivals to have him dismissed as the head of the Atlas military because of what happened in Beacon. The videos of Atlas mechs attacking innocent civilians was still being talked about and the suspicion from the rest of the kingdoms wasn't going away; thus cooperation was at an all-time low. Thus it was getting harder for the military to deal with the ever growing attacks from the White Fang as well as the increased Grimm activity; which forced the Hunters to deal with it. However, even that was becoming a problem since Hunter Teams were being scrutinized by what Kingdom they belonged to; especially those from Atlas who had nothing to do with what happened. It was because of this that Qrow felt a little sympathy for the General; though he did believe it was partially his fault. If Jimmy hadn't brought all that firepower to Beacon to be taken control of by Cinder, then things would be a lot better off by now.

"What colleague?" Taiyang asked, taking his eyes off Morgan Schnee to address the military officer; though still angry. He was still unsure why his daughters and their other teammate would be summoned to Atlas; unless it was about Cinder Fall which he hoped was not the case.

"Has there been any word from HIM?" Ironwood asked Qrow quietly as he got closer and ignored the blonde-haired man. He was hoping for some word by now since Glynda hadn't been very forthcoming as of late.

"No; haven't heard a thing and I am worried. I don't want to believe it but we might have lost him," Qrow said sadly as the thought of having Ozpin's cane still bothered him. If the old man was still alive, he would have thought would have been contacted by now.

"There is a chance that he has been taken prisoner by HER; we know she would like nothing more than to parade this mess in front of his face," the older man suggested with a bit of hope in his voice. Since both of them knew full well who was more than likely behind the current crisis, Qrow knew full well who Ironwood was talking about.

"If that's the case, then there's nothing we can do; there is no way to mount a rescue to HER realm without people dying," stated the raven-haired man firmly and the General agreed. Ozpin would never approve of a mission that posed such a risk.

"My time is valuable; can we get this done with," said a very annoyed Morgan to the group after losing his patience. Winter narrowed her eyes at her father but held her tongue; though she wished the General wasn't present so she didn't have to.

"My apologies; right this way," Ironwood said as he motioned for the assembled to follow him into his office. While it was tempting to remind Mr. Schnee that he was here whether he liked it or not, he had enough problems at the moment without adding one more to them.

The office was quite large and almost took up the entire floor of the building; which made sense for someone of Ironwood's stature. Sporting red carpet, the walls were definitely made of metal and only a few knew that was deliberate so that the room was better protected. Aside from the large desk at the other end of the room, there were a few consoles including a very large monitor on the right side. There was also a holographic table at the left that seemed to show troop movements at first glance; from what Qrow could tell. This was the first time he had been to this office though Ozpin had been here numerous times in the past; when he met with Atlas's previous commanders about the enemy. Everything looked so clean and the lighting coming from the ceiling made sure to eradicate any possible shadows for someone to hide in. At first he thought they were alone until he saw that there was a person seated at one of the three chairs facing the desk.

Someone both he and Taiyang knew quite well.

"What the Hell are you doing here?" Taiyang demanded to know, clearly angry to be seeing this person again. Qrow was also more than curious and fought the urge to draw his weapon right here and attack the individual.

"Taiyang Xiao Long and Qrow Branwen; so good to see you," greeted the man though a tone of mocking could be heard in his voice; still seated in the chair and smiling. Both Yang and Ruby were taken aback by their father's as well as their Uncle's anger.

"Colonel Derricote was the one who request this meeting," Ironwood explained, knowing full well the history between the men. He had personally protested for such a meeting to take place given that things were already complicated enough.

"You're supposed to be in exile in some dump of an outpost in the far reaches; how did you slither back here?" Qrow demanded to know and the Colonel just smirked in response, leaning back in his chair. Both Ruby and Yang could only stare on how their Uncle was acting; wondering what was prompting all of this.

"Well when one makes a bunch of predictions that just happen to come true, they call you back to do your real job," answered the individual with another smirk. Qrow was slightly taken aback by the words and turned to face Ironwood for clarification.

"He speculated that out system for our mechs was vulnerable to hacking as well as the fact that the White Fang would ally with someone like Torchwick if left unchecked," the General informed the group with his face impassive. There was a look of surprised on the raven-haired hunter's face which brought another some to the Colonel.

"Thus the Council decided to bring me back into the fold; which is why I am here," Derricote stated as he suddenly stood up to get a better look of Team RWBY. He smiled at all three teens though they appeared to be unsure of him.

At just under six feet, the man looked to be about their father's as well as their Uncle Qrow's age. While he was slightly larger than the two, he was in no ways fat and looked to be rather fit; though they couldn't be too sure. He had pale white skin, more so than Weiss, and had brown hair that was rather butch; almost bald if it had been cut a little more. Wearing a military uniform like General Ironwood and Winter, his was almost black and Weiss knew that meant he was in the intelligence division; familiar with all the different uniform schemes for Atlas. It was obvious to all three teens that there was some sort of history between the three young men; though Ruby and Yang speculated that it was not a good history. They had never seen their father act that way towards someone other than their Uncle Qrow; usually because he had been drinking and had passed out on the couch again. To say that there was tension in the room was an understatement and all three girls were now nervous.

"You know, I have to say that you two really do look like your mothers and it is apparent that you two have grown to be quite the Huntresses," stated the Colonel as he spoke again, addressing the two sisters. While it sounded sincere, Taiyang couldn't help but growl in response since he knew full well how Raven and Summer felt about the man.

"That's rich of you to say seeing on how you nearly got Summer and Raven killed a number of times; not to mention us as well," Qrow said with a dark tone in his voice; full memory of the incident in his mind. If both he and Taiyang hadn't had to spend time nursing the two women back to health that last time, they probably would have killed the man.

"They understood the risks just as you did; you were Hunters and the fact that you may fall in battle is a guarantee. Sometimes sacrifices have to happen for the greater good," Derricote countered with a somewhat firm voice and waved his hand in dismissal.

"Sacrificing anyone is never okay," Qrow argued back with a firm voice of his own; making sure to express his point in conviction. Taiyang nodded and even the girls were in agreement; though Winter had a slightly different opinion that she kept to herself.

"Well it's a shame that Ozpin was willing to never learn that lesson or teach that to his students; he might be around today if he had," the Colonel said flatly and with another haughty smirk. Qrow's eyes widened and everyone noticed on how his hand went to immediately grab his weapon.

General Ironwood spoke up before that happened however.

"I think it's time we get this briefing going instead of focusing on the past. There are greater concerns in order," ordered the General as he gave the intelligence officer a hard look. The younger man just shrugged and motioned for everyone to focus on the main monitor as the lights in the office dimmed.

"Since the attack on Beacon nine months ago, there has been increasing White Fang activity all over Remnant; which has become alarming. While the activity in Mistral and Vacuo appears to be passive in nature, there has been a sudden shift of their forces to Atlas; though we are unable to ascertain what the White Fang are planning. Given that our current military strength has been diminished because of what happened at Beacon, we are a little on edge," explained the Colonel gravely and the group was still unsure why there were here. Qrow and Ruby knew of the increased having come across it in Haven a few months ago.

"I fail to see why thins concerns our daughters," Morgan Schnee said with annoyance, wanting to get to the point. He wanted Weiss away from these people so that she could focus on more important matters like the company.

"I am getting to that; I ask for your patience. Six months ago, authorities in Vacuo responded to what appeared to be an attack on a warehouse in the industrial section of the Capital; which was run by a local network of the White Fang. Inside, they discovered nothing but dead bodies which had been practically in pieces; leading them to suspect Grimm activity in the city. On closer inspection, it was discovered that had been because of a very sharp object by a possible living opponent," informed Derricote, showing the group a few of the slides from the crime scene. It showed various bodies that had been hacked to pieces with blood all over the place.

"At first, we weren't sure what to think," the Colonel continued "Thinking that this was an isolated incident; possible the result of an altercation with a local crime gang. However, three weeks later there was another scene in the city that was even more gruesome; again, the members of the White Fang were all found killed in the same way. We were going to believe the same thing when in the next week, another safehouse used by the group was hit; this time in Mistral. Same type of attack with even more brutality involved; thus we believed that someone was attacking the White Fang with a serious grudge. We know this person also has some sort of history with its leader Adam Taurus given that this was found," and with that, he showed them a photo of Adam's name being written in blood on the wall next to the bodies; which had been piled up. It was so morbid that Taiyang was tempted to shield his two daughter's eyes from what was shown on the monitor.

"Again, I fail to see why this is so concerning to my daughter other than it's nice to see that someone is finally dealing with these mongrels," the elder Schnee said, once again obviously impatient and wanting the Colonel to get to the point. Instead of responding, the military officer ignored the business man and kept going though he did roll his eyes.

"There have been more attacks in the last few months with the same MO with the same level of viciousness; which slowly caused us to become somewhat worried. That was apparent when this happened nine days ago just on the edge of Atlas itself," he stated showing them another picture; this time of another scene. This time however, there was a familiar face to the elder Schnee who just gaped.

"That's my CFO Robert Jenkins; I was told he had been killed in a car accident by the authorities a week ago," Morgan exclaimed and in disbelief in what he was seeing. The video showed the deceased man in a bloody but recognizable mess next to a few White Fang members in what appeared to be another warehouse.

"I am afraid that I have to inform you that Mr. Jenkins was accepting money from the White Fang now; thus how they were able to hijack our mechs as well as the your dust shipments. When we found him in the midst of that scene, we immediately launched an investigation and found dummy accounts containing money from the organization that he had been hiding," informed Derricote in a somewhat neutral voice though Qrow could see the smirk hiding in his voice. It was apparent that Morgan Schnee had no friends in the room; even from his own children.

"I see," was all that the elder Schnee said and his face went so red out of rage that Weiss simply shrank back out of pure fear; which spoke volumes to many of the assembled. Taiyang made a note to ask his daughters if their teammate ever showed any signs of abuse.

"After that, we decided to surveil all known locations of White Fang activity; especially here in Atlas itself. Two days ago, another location was hit but we have video of the incident; which I will now show you and will explain why I brought you all here in the first place," the Colonel explained as he started the surveillance footage. Everyone's attention was on it in full anticipation on what it would reveal.

The video showed what appeared to be an apartment building in a rundown section in Atlas; probably on the outskirts if someone had to guess. The video showed a group of White Fang members, masks and all, heading into the apartment building and there seemed to be no activity for a while as the Colonel sped up the video until there was a sudden explosion that rocked the building; as evidenced by the outward burst of glass. While there was sound coming through, it was only a little given that the location of where the video was being shot was from a good distance away; maybe in a building across the street. As the video got darker, the night vision kicked in though it was mostly green; everything was still visible though. All of a sudden, part of a White Fang member was thrown through the window and laid motionless on the street below while another member ran out the front door in an effort to escape. A figure stopped him though, coming from above, and knocked him to the ground.

The figure was known quite well to Yang, Ruby, and Weiss.

"Blake?" Yang whispered as she watched her Faunus friend with her knees on the man's chest; holding him in place. A mix of emotions, she couldn't believe what she was seeing and could only stare in shock.

"What is she doing?" Weiss asked as she squinted to get a better look. Derricote zoomed in on her teammate and they all got a better look; which shocked them even more.

"She's torturing him," Qrow stated as he watched the Faunus teen slice at the man as he screamed; blood leaking out from the body. From what he could make out from the video, it was apparent that she was asking about where Adam was.

"From what we now know, that is what she has been doing to every member of the White Fang she has encountered. By the time our forces got to the scene, she had fled with no way of tracking her. The wounds she made towards that Faunus match every person killed in the last few months and we were wondering if you three knew of how we could capture her. While she has been careful to avoid clashes with civilians as well as authorities, we feel that it is only a matter of time before there is collateral damage. It was fortunate that apartment building housed only members of the White Fang and was a front for their activities," the military officer said as he paused the video where Blake's face was shown. While zoomed in, the girls were caught off guard by the sadistic look upon her face as she tortured her victim.

"Blake would never do that; all she wanted to do was use her gifts to help others," Yang told the Colonel in protest as she struggled to wrap her head around things. Though she wore her face and wielded the Gomel Shroud, that was not the Blake that was her partner.

"That is her; I'm sorry," General Ironwood said and you could hear the sympathy in his voice as he said it, glancing over at Qrow. While he only met the Faunus once at Beacon, he knew her fighting style and it match the person in the video.

Yang didn't say a word as she turned and fled out of the office; throwing up as she exited.

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	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **Again, I want to thank all those who are still following this story and I look forward to your future reviews. If you think I am going too OOC on any of the characters without explanation, just let me know in the reviews. I appreciate any advice you can give me.**

Luckily, there was an empty trash can nearby when she puked.

Ignoring the angry secretary, who had recoiled at the fact that the blonde had used her trashcan as a bucket, Yang fell to her knees and emptied the remaining contents of her stomach.

She had seen death before and even bloody messes from Grimm attacks on occasions; especially in Professor Port's classes. She was also a major fan of action films, video games, and was no stranger to violence in particular when it came to her anger issues. What Yang had just seen, from the scenes to the video itself, was beyond what she had ever encountered and it was taking every bit of herself to wrap her head around it. It wasn't the fact that she had just watched the one person she loved just as much as her sister practically eviscerate living people in horrible ways but the fact that she almost seemed to enjoy it. Even though the video hadn't been clear, Yang could make out that Blake was smiling when torturing the White Fang member. Even when fighting Grimm, the Faunus teen never took joy at killing; keeping her feelings in check every step.

It was one of the things that Yang admired about her partner; that she wasn't a loose cannon like she was during a fight on occasion. When Blake fought, it was always with precision and grace which allowed her to keep her emotions in check unlike the flash that the blonde displayed during her fighting. Blake was there to keep Yang in check during fights; to create a sort of balance that allowed them to fight so well together during battles. It was what allowed them to beat Torchwick during that battle in Vale when he was in his mech to the fight during the Vytal when they fought as a team. When Blake had left her, the blonde felt that she had lost her other half and was now incomplete; feeling that if she had been there, maybe Yang would be in better shape right now. To see the dark-haired Faunus act like a vengeful hunter that cleaved her way through her enemies made Yang emotionally as well as physically sick.

"Are you okay?" Ruby asked her sister as she leaned in to support her sister. Yang was going to nod but shook her head instead; deciding to be honest. She was not alright; not by a long shot and she fought the urge to start crying.

"That's not Blake," was all that Yang could say after standing back up; a mix of anger and disbelief. Even though she had said it out loud, the words sounded hollow and as if they weren't true.

"It was her Yang; you believe it just as I do," Ruby told her sister while in some sort of shock herself. What she saw was not the person she remembered who read books above Yang every night back at Beacon.

Yang was about to respond when Morgan Schnee stormed out of the room without even giving the two girls a glance. Her father and uncle came from behind to talk with them while it appeared that Weiss was speaking with her sister. From where they were, they could see the elder Schnee talking into his scroll and seemed to be still in rage; probably from the news that one of his own men had been a traitor. It was a little shocking to Ruby that there would be someone willing to sell out their own for money though she was then reminded that Roman Torchwick had done the same thing; though he did it for survival more than money. It was disturbing that Cinder had managed to acquire so many in her insane quest and the teen hated that she now had to suspect everyone of being the enemy; except for those she was close with that is. A part of her wondered if Blake was now working for Cinder and was doing her dirty work; shuddering at the thought of losing her friend to that twisted person. However, it was still apparent that Cinder and the White Fang were still working together given that Mercury had been seen in their midst giving orders lately.

"We told Derricote that you girls needed to process this so you will have to be interviewed tomorrow," Taiyang told his daughters while glancing over at the military officer. The Colonel was by himself speaking on his scroll while Ironwood was with the Schnee sisters.

"What did he need us for anyways?" Yang asked her father, a little pale and clearly upset. She just wanted to leave this place and clear her head.

"He wants to know everything about Blake so that she can be caught. I don't think he is telling us everything though," her father stated while giving the Colonel a suspicious glance. It was everything not to go over and slug the man for what he just revealed to his daughters.

"Tai is right; that man always has another agenda up his sleeve and you girls will need to be careful. We'll be right there with you so you won't be alone," Qrow stated while putting his hand on the blonde's shoulder to comfort her. It was strange to see their father and uncle to have such a distaste for a single person; the closest ever being Yang's mother when spoken upon.

"Where are we going to stay?" the blonde asked since they were going to stay in Atlas for the next day or so. While she really needed to rest, they hadn't made any plans to stay somewhere while in the city.

"There's a safe house that I use on occasion when I come here; it's a little small though," Qrow answered, wondering if he had cleaned the place since his last visit. Technically, it was Ozpin's safe house but let the raven-haired man use it when needed.

"Actually, they can stay with me," stated Weiss casually, walking up to the small group after leaving her sister. Both sisters looked at one another in surprise while the two older men exchanged worried glances.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Taiyang said hesitantly as he watched the older Schnee exit through the elevator; leaving his daughter behind. He didn't feel very comfortable having his daughters anywhere near that man even though they could take care of themselves.

"I don't live with my father under the same roof and have my own place on the property; there's more than enough room for them," Weiss assured the older man while ignoring the mixed reactions from her teammates. While Yang looked just as uncertain as her father, Ruby couldn't look happier at the thought of spending some time with her old friend after so long apart.

"What do you think?" the father asked, looking over at Qrow and putting him on the spot. The man shrugged and nodded his head, giving his blessing to the idea.

"That settles it then; follow me," Weiss said, turning to leave while the girls said goodbye to their father. Once Taiyang told his daughters that he would call them later to check in, the teens left the room.

"I need to talk to you," Ironwood told Qrow quietly and in a serious tone. He led both him as well as Taiyang to the corner of the room where they were out of earshot of the other occupants.

"What is it?" Qrow asked the older man, noting that Jimmy was deliberately moving them away from the gaze of Derricote; who was still in the other room. He also noticed how Winter was shutting the door so that they would have a little bit more privacy and keeping watch.

"The Colonel has an agenda," Ironwood told the two men and that was not a surprise given their history with the man.

"What else is new; that man is a snake," Taiyang said and one could practically see the resentment dripping from his mouth. Qrow understood given that they nearly lost their team during the last encounter with the military officer.

"Be that as it may, there was no reason why your daughters had to be here since we already know everything there is about Ms. Belladonna. Ever since we got that footage, we have been going through her life," Ironwood informed while looking over at the door. Taiyang narrowed his eyes and Qrow frowned since it meant that there was definitely something going on behind the scenes.

The three teens rode down the elevator in silence until Yang decided to break it.

"So you're with your father's company now?" the blonde asked Weiss; noting on how she was deliberately avoiding looking at Ruby. She had a good idea why and could understand since she was also slightly mad at her sister.

"Yes; my father put me in charge of both the Schnee Security Services as well as our R&D Department," answered the white-haired teen; seemingly proud. Yang noticed that her teammate glanced ever so slightly at Ruby with a hurt look on her face; though it was almost too quick to be caught.

Weiss seemed to have changed her appearance as well; no longer sporting the white dress she had always worn back at Beacon. Instead, she now wore a mixed blue dress with the darker color at the upper part of her body while the skirt part was a lighter shade; it also showed a little more cleavage than before though the skirt length was about the same. Her hair was the same style and she seemed to be a little thinner as well; which worried Yang since Weiss in her opinion was too thin anyways. Her eyes showed age and the blonde almost detected dark circles under her eyes; though the teen was wearing makeup for sure. Her shoes, heels as always, were a new style with them being a little darker than before. Weiss's Myrtenaster was at her side though seemed to have undergone a slight change as well; part of it being that the dust caliber had a larger barrel and the blade a little curvier at the tip. What really caught Yang's attention was the lack of jewelry she wore; no longer having anything on her face and hands.

"Well thanks for letting us crash at your place; don't know how long we will be here anyways," stated Yang, wanting to get out of Atlas as soon as possible. She was a mix of emotions right now, which was out of character for her, and was still digesting the fact that her partner had become a psycho killer.

"I imagine it's going to be a while given what is going on," Weiss simply said and before Yang could respond to that, the teen held up her hand to prevent anymore conversations. With the both of them slightly confused, the two sisters followed their friend out of the elevator and to the exit of the building.

For some reason, Yang had expected a limo of some sorts; caught off guard by the fact that Weiss had come in a smaller vehicle. Blue and unmarked, there was a driver holding the door open for them; dressed in a white chauffer's uniform. After nodding at the tall white-skinned brown-haired man, they got into the vehicle. It was a little tight with Ruby squeezed in between her sister and Weiss but there was still enough room to move around; though only slightly. It seemed that Weiss hadn't anticipated seeing the girls again much less invite them to her house; Yang's bag being placed in the trunk. When the car started and moved away from the building, Yang got a good look at the driver and was surprised to see it was a Faunus; complete with the cat ears like Blake. It had been a while since she had last seen one, with none being in Patch though they would be welcomed since it was a tolerant town. Ruby also noticed the driver and looked over at Weiss; who just smiled.

"Many of my personal staff are Faunus; Marco here used to be with the White Fang," said the white-haired teen. That drew astounded gasps from the two sisters and they became immediately alert given their history with the organization.

"Back when it had been Peaceful and Pure; before Adam Taurus corrupted it," said the man bitterly. While Yang and Ruby relaxed somewhat, they couldn't help but be a little under guard though Weiss looked relaxed.

"So I have friends in the military; we can use them to find out where the White Fang hideouts are," Weiss said after a few minutes of silence. Yang was completely caught off guard, the theme of the day, and was now confused.

"Why would we need to know that?" asked the Blonde; having a sick feeling on what was to come next. That same small part of her was hoping that she was right since that part wanted it.

"Oh please; we all want answers to what is happening to Blake and I already know that Ruby is planning on finding out by going after her so it's only natural that we do this as a team," Weiss answered, leaning over to whisper something in the drivers ear. He nodded and took a side road that would lead them to a new destination.

"What?!" Yang stated; though more as a statement than a question. Truthfully, she shouldn't have been surprised given that a part of her had wanted to do the same thing; overshadowed by the rage she was still feeling towards Blake.

"We think so much alike; no wonder we're partners," Ruby said in a bubbly tone, happy that Weiss was on board with her plan. Ever since the video, the teen knew that they had to find out the truth about their friend before it was too late.

"Really? I thought Jaune was your partner now given that you have been gallivanting around Remnant with him and the rest of his team. Are you even a member of Team RWBY anymore or is it just Yang and I now?" the white-haired teen asked her friend with a mix of sarcasm, anger, and even a trace of hurt in her voice. Ruby seemed to be completely a loss of words while Yang understood where Weiss was coming from.

"I always believed we were still a team and I thought about you guys every day; but things needed to be done and Jaune, Nora, and Ren were there with me," Ruby defended, not understanding why her friend was angry at her. She glanced over at her sister for support and was surprised to find none; the blonde appearing to agree with Weiss.

"Without us; without me. I waited every day for you to appear so we can tackle Cinder and her allies together. But you never came and left me alone in Atlas without anyone I could rely on for comfort. And it wasn't just me, you left Yang too who needed her sister in her time of need; especially after Blake left," Weiss chastised the young girl, making her point known; Yang noting that Weiss was emphasizing the "me" part of that statement. All Ruby could do was just look down at the floor in shame; not sure what to say.

"We're almost there My Lady," Marco said from the front of the car and Yang looked out the window to see that they had entered the Schnee Dust Company's district; as evidenced by all the buildings bearing their crest. Yang had heard that the company had a whole section of the city to themselves where both their military and dust operations were located.

"Where are we going?" the blonde asked, now once again confused why they were here of all places. As far as she knew, the Schnee family residence was located just outside the city in what was rumored to be a castle; though Yang never really asked Weiss if that was true or not.

"To get you a new arm; we can't go hunting for Blake, which we will probably run into the White Fang in doing, with that useless thing," Weiss answered as she pulled out her scroll to text some instructions to her people. Both the sisters looked at their friend in surprise, which Yang was really getting tired in doing today, with the blonde looking at her prophetic.

"Me and Dad looked into getting something combat capable for me but the cost was way too much," Yang protested, remembering on how much lien they would have to spend and realizing that it was way out of their budget; even with her father calling in every favor he had. It was another reason why she believed that her career as a Huntress was over.

"Money is of no consequence for me so the cost is nothing; besides, I have had people working on an arm specifically for you in mind for months now," the white-haired teen informed the blonde from her scroll; as if it were nothing. To say Yang was touched was an understatement; especially given their history.

"Really Weiss, you shouldn't have," Yang told her teammate, reaching across her sister to place her hand atop of Weiss's. Watching them, Ruby couldn't help but feel guilty that she had left her team like that when they clearly had needed her.

"We're a team; even if the dolt here forgot all about that, I never did and knew that it was up to me to make sure we were ready to go back out there when the time was right. I have been preparing for this for a while and am happy that it has come to this; though not as I expected," stated Weiss with her words left out there. Both Ruby and Yang knew what she meant given everything that was going on.

After all, they had a teammate out there that had gone rogue with who knows what after her.

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	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **Again, I want to thank all those who continue to read this fic and sorry if this chapter has some errors in it; my Beta is out for the next week. I would appreciate any reviews on how my characters act this chapter since I want to know if I had them too OOC.**

Yang stared at the arm in the tank.

As she watched in awe at what was going to be her new arm, the teen couldn't help but feel apprehensive.

The building they were in was at the edge of the Schnee Company's compound; a section devoted towards R&D as well as other things. Heavily protected, it was manned by both Faunus and Humans that seemed devoted to Weiss for some reason; which the sisters had yet to find out from their friend. A single story and made of red brick, most of the facility was actually underground which a single elevator led to. Once they had passed a few checkpoints, which Weiss easily did given that she managed the place, they were allowed access to the various labs that lay about. While they were curious about the rest of the place and what it contained, their friend had led the sisters straight to the medical wing where the arm was located. Once there, a scientist that was in charge of the prosthetic's development briefed Yang on what the appendage could do. While Yang listened to his words, she couldn't help but stare at the thing out of awe and curiousity.

The scientist that had talked to her only a few minutes ago had insisted that the arm was made of metal; just covered in what was essentially fake skin. At first, Yang had actually believed that it was her old arm, somehow regenerated using advance Atlas tech. It looked like her arm and Weiss had to explain that it was part of the process for the blonde's body to accept the new appendage as her own; part of the new technology involved. From what she understood, the metal the arm used was supposed to be more durable than previous models used by the Atlas military for their veterans; or even the rich in the kingdom. This would allow the blonde to fight according to her style without risking the prosthetic appendage itself in battle with Grimm or other adversaries. There had been a lot of resources that had gone into this and Yang could not help feel that she didn't deserve it; despite Weiss's insistence that it was no problem.

"I can't believe you did this for me," Yang told the white-haired teammate who was standing only a few feet away. They were all located inside a small room where the appendage lay in the tank; with a few personnel working at their stations.

"We're a Team; if I can add to my family's atonement by helping you recover your ability to become a Huntress then that is enough for me," Weiss stated with a simple wave of her hand; thinking nothing of it. Ruby, who was standing next to her, couldn't help but feel proud of her friend and partner.

"I really want to give you a hug right now," the blonde said with a small smile and with tears in her eyes; seemingly happy. While she was still a conflict of emotions, Yang couldn't help but feel that things might be looking up for her.

"Please don't; just go back to being yourself. Right now, we need you at your best if we hope to get to Blake," Weiss stated and that caused the blonde to frown a bit. Like her emotions, she was conflicted about what she saw and what her partner was now doing.

Yang was about to ask how when one of the doctors stepped forward and cleared his throat.

"We still need to do some pre-op before we get Ms. Xiao Long into surgery; if she would come this way, the nurse will help her get ready," the doctor stated as he motioned for the blonde to follow him. Looking over at Weiss, her friend nodded and Yang nervously followed the man through one of the side doors.

"How long is this going to take?" Ruby asked her partner as they just stood in the room with the arm. Even though Yang had been fascinated by the appendage, the young teen was a little creeped out by it.

"A few hours for the surgery and then some more time for Yang to get used to her arm. The doctors will also want to make sure her body accepts it before releasing her to recover. At best, it will be another two days before she is ready which will give us enough time to come up with a possible location for Blake," Weiss answered the teen as she pulled out her scroll and started typing a few things; texting her contacts. After she was done, the teen led them out of the room and to her private office in the same building.

"So you run this entire place?" Ruby asked her friend as they walked through the hall; passing personnel that moved to the side for them. The younger girl noticed that not only were there both Faunus and Humans in the mix of people working here, that they also nodded to her partner out of respect.

"Basically; my father put me in charge of this entire division as a test to see what I could do. He was about to shut this all down unless I could turn things around and make it all profitable in some way; which I managed to do with the help of Winter and her friends in the military," informed Weiss as they made a right turn and nodded to the pair of guards who opened the door for her. Ruby followed her friend into a small room which was obviously her office; given what was inside.

When it came to Weiss back at Beacon, the teammate had always been organized compared to the rest of the girls especially Yang who was kind of a slob. Looking around her office, Ruby saw that it was quite organized despite its small size; though it had a small bathroom on the right side from the entrance. The walls were painted a light blue while the carpet was a pure white; though they looked to have been cleaned quite thoroughly. Facing the doorway was a large black wooden desk filled with paperwork that was stacked at various heights on opposite sides of the desk itself; a wooden chair was directly behind it with a small laptop on a smaller table next to the desk. There was a small refrigerator on the far wall along with a medium-sized sofa; that had a stack of folded up blankets on it along with a pillow. Above the desk was a painted picture of what appeared to be Weiss and her family; while she recognized a younger Winter and Morgan, there was a woman that Ruby had not seen before and concluded that it was her teammate's mother.

"Is that your mother?" Ruby asked Weiss while she looked up and studied the woman. It was surprising that the woman had red hair in contrast to the others in the portrait; though she was the only one who was genuinely smiling.

"Yes; that was taken about ten years ago at the manor when I was eight. It was one of the few times were got together for such a thing," the teen commented as she looked up briefly before going back to her phone. While it was only brief, Ruby sensed a hint of sadness in her friend's voice.

"She looks beautiful; when can I meet her?" the red-cloaked teen asked, curious about the woman given that Weiss never talked about her. Come to think of it, Ruby never heard her friend ever mention anything about her family before except for Winter.

"She died when I was eight; she got sick so there was nothing that could be done," Weiss answered softly as she went over to the desk and sat down. This time, Ruby could definitely see sadness on her friend's face.

"I'm sorry; I guess we are similar in many ways," Ruby stated though mostly to herself than to her friend. When it came to mothers in Team RWBY, no one really talked about them a whole lot; especially since they were sore spots for both Yang and Ruby.

"Really? I wouldn't have run off to fight without you by my side after everything that had happened," the white-haired teen said sarcastically; clearly still angry. Ruby sighed in annoyance faced her partner with a glare.

"Listen, I really wanted to come for you but I felt that that you needed to stay in Atlas to be safe. After what happened to Pyrrha and Penny, I didn't want any more of my friends hurt," Ruby pressed, trying to make a point to the other teen.

"Then why did you invite the others on your little quest? It seems to me that you had no problem having the rest of Team JPNR by your side," countered Weiss angrily, not buying her partner's story.

"Because they were already involved and it was their teammate who was killed at Beacon. You are forgetting that they don't have a home to go back to and that they lost everything when the school fell," Ruby argued back, becoming frustrated.

"And like I wanted to come back here?! You have no idea what it's been like trapped here in Atlas while the world falls apart around us. Not only is the Grimm infestations getting worse, there has been whisperings of war in the background; Atlas is becoming more and more isolated from the other kingdoms because they still think we attacked Vale," Weiss returned, even more frustrated and practically yelling at her friend.

"I wanted you safe; I wanted everyone safe," the younger teen snarled, now angry though she could sympathize with her friend. After meeting Morgan Schnee, she could understand why Weiss wanted to go to school all the way at Beacon.

"You can't protect everyone Ruby and it's not your job as well as your right to decide that you have that power. We are supposed to be partners and it seems that only one of us remembered that," the other teen said, sitting down at the desk. She clasped her hands and stared straight at Ruby with a relentless look upon her face.

"I know that; more than you think," Ruby said sadly as she plopped onto the couch. Weiss got up and went to her side, sensing that her partner needed a shoulder to cry on so to speak.

"You couldn't have saved Pyrrha; she made her choice when she went up alone to go after Cinder," the white-haired teen stated quietly, holding her friend close as she stared down at the floor. While it was a little harsh to say, Weiss knew it was the right thing.

"I know and Jaune keeps saying the same thing; but I can't get that image of Cinder murdering her out of my mind," the red-cloaked teen told her friend, her voice a mix of anger and sorrow.

"Then don't forget; just use it to drive you to accomplishing your goal of stopping that bitch once and for all. But we are doing this as a team; once Blake is found and we help her, we can all go after the enemy together," Weiss said adamantly and in a tone that booked no room for argument; using her hand to make sure that Ruby's eyes met her own.

With that, Ruby nodded and decided to change the subject.

"It's not going to be easy talking to Blake; she looked like she was insane or something," the younger teen said and Weiss nodded her head in agreement.

"Do you think that she is on something? Or maybe under the influence of someone else?" Weiss inquired as she went back to the desk to see if her contacts had responded yet. In the months of her being trapped in Atlas, the teen had did her best to build up a steady stream of contacts in all parts of the Kingdom.

"It's not Cinder since I know she is still working with the White Fang; I saw Emerald and Mercury with a group of them a month ago. Maybe we have a new player in the game," Ruby suggested and Weiss was caught off guard by the girl's words.

"Well aren't we using grown-up language; have you been practicing?" Weiss asked with a smirk and her friend couldn't help but chuckle herself.

"Ren said that I should still keep up on my studies out in the field so he loaned me some schoolbooks when we had downtime," the younger girl explained as she pulled out her scroll to see if there were any messages. While communications were now up between the Kingdoms, messages were now being extra scrutinized because of all the problems; thus they had to text in code a lot.

"Have you been doing a lot of fighting? I have been trying to keep myself ready but you could only do so much on the practice fields," Weiss informed Ruby; noting that the red cloak she wore looked a little beat-up.

"Yep and it's pretty bad out there. There were more than a few times that we found abandoned villages infested with Grimm," the younger girl said, updating her partner and shaking off the brutal memories of what was out there.

"It's been bad everywhere; my sister says that Ironwood keeps trying to smooth over the population but that it is not working. Even my father is having problems since we had branches in the other Kingdoms," Weiss stated, her tone grave. In the rare moments when all three Schnees got together for some family gathering, the current state of things was often brought up.

"So either Blake is acting on her own or someone is helping her; if she is being helped, then whoever is helping her is an enemy of the White Fang but not a friend to us," Ruby put forth adamantly with an emphasis on the latter part.

"I agree; anyone who would make Blake do those horrible things is guilty of turning her into a monster. She would never have done that if it weren't for her being under something or someone's influence," said the white-haired teen, approving of what her partner just said.

"I wonder if she is in Atlas; the last massacre happened just outside the city and the Colonel did say that the White Fang were congregating here for some reason," the other teen put forth; wondering if that was true. She couldn't forget how her father and uncle were so hostile to the Colonel that she wondered if he had been honest.

"There are plenty of ways to get into the city if you know the right people. If someone my father trusted could be accepting bribes on the side from the White Fang, then anything is possible," Weiss said, still in disbelief of that particular news. Like Morgan, she was also extremely taken aback that there had been a traitor in their midst the entire time.

"Maybe Sun and Neptune know something about Blake; we could try and contact them," the younger girl put forth while pulling her scroll out again. While she hadn't seen them since the Battle of Beacon, Ruby still had their number.

"They don't; I've been in contact with many of our friends except for your group and no one has heard from Blake since The Fall. Sun and Neptune have been in Mistral with Team CFVY dealing with a horde of Deathstalkers for the last few months and promised to tell me if they saw Blake," Weiss informed her friend as she leaned back in her chair. Looking over at the clock, she knew that the doctors would be starting Yang's surgery soon.

"Then we have no leads," Ruby stated with a frustrated sigh. Other than Team RWBY and JPNR, Sun was the only one who had constant contact with Blake back at Beacon.

"We have one; I contacted Neo to see if any of her sources in the underworld have any news," Weiss informed Ruby and the younger teen's eyes widened at the name she just mentioned; her mouth almost agape.

"Neo? As in Torchwick's Neo?" the red-cloaked girl asked with her eyes narrowing and her temper rising. The last time she saw the parasol-wielding criminal, she had flown into a swarm of griffons.

"The same; we're allies so to speak so she has been helping me track our enemies," answered the partner and understanding why she was so surprised by the news.

"Why would Neo help us; she was working for Cinder," Ruby argued, now confused.

"Believe it or not, Neo and Torchwick were really close; more like a brother and sister thing than anything else. When Torchwick died at Beacon, she blamed Cinder more than you; though having the White Fang try and kill her also helped her to our side. I came in contact with her about three months ago here in Atlas thus we became allies; especially since she wants Cinder dead just as much as we do," Weiss informed, remembering on how the muted-teen texted on how much she wanted to stick the Fallen Maiden.

"Is that wise? She could turn on us," Ruby put forth, not sure they could trust their former enemy given their history.

"Hatred and Anger are emotions I can trust; she will do right by us as long as we have the same enemy," Weiss replied, dismissing her partner's concerns. Besides, Weiss did have safeguards in place in case Neo did try and pull a fast one on them.

Ruby was about to say something when there was a knock at the door; a doctor appearing to say that it was time for Yang's surgery.

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	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **Sorry for the late update, really late update come to think of it, but my work schedule has been Hellish lately and leaves little to write at times. I am also working on another fic on the side as well which should be released in a few days hopefully. Again, I want to thank all those who continue to read and I will try to get the next update out sooner than this one; hope you enjoy!**

Yang woke up feeling like crap.

As the light above shined in her face and practically blinded her, the teen could barely make out what was being said to her.

When the doctors first tried to put her under, it was discovered that Yang's aura made it tricky to inject the drugs; thus she had to be given an oral sedative before injecting the stronger stuff. It had been surprising to the teen that the doctors had to go that extra step since she had never had to go to the hospital before for something like this; except for what she lost the arm in the first place. That had been an awful experience since she had woken up to the medics wrapping her stump and the confusion had become an ugly scene with threats of violence coming from the blonde. If it hadn't been for the arrival of her Uncle Qrow, who had appeared with an unconscious Ruby in his arms, things would have escalated quickly since Blake had left her alone by then. After the shock had worn off, the three had left for Patch on an airship that had been evacuating everyone from Beacon; though she had been asleep for that trip. The first thing she had seen was her father placing her on her bed after that whole incident.

Ruby had come to visit before she conked out, which had been nice since Yang was still unsure of the whole thing. Weiss's people had assured the blonde that the process of replacing her current prosthetic with the combat ready one was an easy endeavor so she didn't have to worry at all. In fact, the process time had been shorten considerably since the stump of her missing arm was prepared in terms of the nerves as well as the bone itself; thus she would not have to be under that long. After that, she would spend the rest of her time at Weiss's place going through the motions of getting used to the new appendage; with visits to make sure that there were no problems. Yang hoped that it would not take too much time given that they were on a deadline with Blake making her move at any moment. She hoped that her teammate had discovered something on her partner while she had been unconscious; a location hopefully. If they could get to the Faunus before she killed any more White Fang or caught by the Atlas Military, then they might have a chance to find out what is going on with her.

"Ms. Xiao Long? Are you able to understand me?" asked a male voice gently from her side. The teen nodded instead of responding verbally given that her throat was dry.

"Here, take this," said the voice again something brushed up against her lips; which she opened and a cold liquid washed down her throat. The flavor made it something other than water but it wasn't bad tasting.

"How did it go?" Yang asked as her eyes began to focus more and more feeling came back to her body.

"See for yourself," the voice told her and Yang looked over at her new arm; which she was just now starting to feel. Looking at it, it seemed more real than before even though the flesh of it was fake.

"I am going to need you to perform some movement for me even though we will keep it strapped down for now. Can you please clench your fist?" the doctor asked her; the same one who originally briefed her on the procedure.

"Like this?" Yang inquired, clenching the new metal appendage's fist with ease since she had gone through this with the previous version. This one felt a little different though and seemed a bit firmer in the grip.

"Exactly; keep doing that until it feels natural to you. By replacing the prosthetic that you had originally, this will go a lot faster even though this is a completely new model," the man explained for what Yang felt was the millionth time. While the blonde knew she wasn't the most studious person, with Yang and Blake having to help her with her school assignments on many occasions, she understood what was needed of her.

For the next few minutes, the doctor had the blonde go through various exercises that she had she had done previously with the last operation; though this one was a bit differently. It was apparent that this new arm was geared, no pun intended, towards more of a combat role given that there was more she could do with it; such as throw a better punch. In fact, once she was dressed and up, the staff had her punch a pad hooked to a machine to test the stress level of her new prosthetic and the damage it could do. Due to it being a possible problem on her stump as well as the nerves, the metal appendage had to be calibrated a couple of times so that she could not overdo it and damage her nerves as well as her shoulder bone. It was a couple of hours before the doctors felt that both arms were working in proportion of one another and felt that Yang could rest of the rest of the evening. She had just gotten dressed when her sister and Weiss came into the room so that they could leave for the night.

"Wow; it looks so real," Ruby said as she got closer to her sister for a better inspection. Yang held it up for both teens to see; amused when Ruby started poking it.

"It almost feels like it is real too; I keep having to remind myself that I have to extend my aura to surround the tissue since it was designed that way," Yang explained to her sister while she moved it around some more.

"I don't understand," Ruby stated with confusion as they left the room to head back to the car which was waiting for them outside the building.

"The tissue is experimental and was designed to conduct a person's aura so that it can extend to the arm itself. That way, the arm is better protected during combat for users who rely on close combat situations," Weiss informed her partner as they walked; knowing everything there is to know about the blondes new prosthetic. After all, she had assigned the team to the project with her friend fully in mind.

"Well thank you; I don't think I can repay you for what you did for me," Yang told her teammate with a little guilt in her voice. The arm she now bore must have cost a lot and used a lot of Schnee resources that her father did not know about.

"It's not a problem; like I said before, we are a team. I just hope it will be useful for what is to come," the white-haired teen said and allowed the guards to open the door for her to let them out of the building. It was already dark out with Remnant's broken moon bright in the sky.

"Did you guys find out anything?" Yang inquired after they got into the car; which was a bigger model than the one before. While it had the same driver as before, it was a little more comfortable and sported facing seats in the back; with Weiss on one side while the sister were on the other.

"Sun and Neptune contacted me; they did see Blake a few months ago in Vacuo where she stayed with them a few days. They told me that she had been moody and kept mostly to herself until she came home covered in blood one night; running after they tried to confront her about it," Weiss informed with a frown and Yang sighed at the news that her partner was still running away instead of talking to people.

"Did they have anything to say about her other than that?" Yang asked, desperately wanting to know more. She didn't remember the Colonel saying that there had been an incident in Vacuo but she might have missed it.

"No; though she seemed to be cradling something in her hands always that they never got a chance to see. I told Sun what Blake had been doing and he reported that the White Fang had all but disappeared from the Kingdom after a few of their safehouses had been hit; thus we thing she was responsible," the Schnee stated and Yang once again frowned at the news; disappointed that there wasn't more.

"Vacuo was the first place Blake hit so maybe that was when she first started attacking the White Fang; Sun and Neptune probably saw her before she started doing all of this," Ruby suggested, remembering on how the Colonel mentioned that the kingdom was where it all started.

"You said she was cradling something; they never saw it?" inquired the blonde, curious about that particular part of what she was told.

"No and I am curious about that as well; while it could be nothing, they did say that she was very protective of it and always had it on her," Weiss answered and she pondered on the news herself; wondering if there was a connection. They had just left the perimeter of the Schnee Company's facility and were now heading towards her family's estate.

"So we're thinking that she found something that is making her that way? I wish we knew where she had been if that was the case," Ruby said, speaking up for the first time. If something was making Blake do all this, it made sense given that the Faunus was not a vicious person at heart.

"Or someone gave it to her; this is all speculation of course since we really don't know all that much about Blake in the first place," Weiss put forth which earned a disproving look from Ruby and a groan from Yang.

"We've been through this; Blake is our teammate would never betray us," the blonde said with a growl; not wanting to bring this all up again from when they first found out that Blake was a Faunus.

"I agree and think of Blake as my friend too; but we still don't know anything about her past other than she was in the White Fang. For all we know, this was why Blake ran away from the organization in the first place because she has a history of doing this," the Schnee countered though in a gentle but firm way. She was now regretting never asking Blake about her childhood or time at the White Fang so that she could trust her more.

"If Blake had done this in the past, we would have heard about it or she would have told us," Yang argued back, not happy with what she considered accusations from Weiss. While the words made sense, she was too stubborn to admit it.

"Unless she was ashamed and didn't want to tell us; we all know she liked to run away from her problems and this could have been one of them. As for us hearing about it, we didn't hear about this latest string of bloodbaths until the Colonel briefed us," Weiss pressed back, not budging from her point. While she could understand Yang's feelings about all of this, she would not let the blonde dismiss her ideas either.

"But wouldn't Professor Ozpin have? He wouldn't have let her enter the school if he knew she was a danger to others," Ruby reasoned as a way to side with her sister; though her partner did have some good points. She knew she had to intervene now as their leader before things escalated badly.

"Ozpin liked his secrets; this could have been one of them," Weiss stated though she had admired the Headmaster a lot. Over the last few months, the teen had come to the conclusion that there had been a lot of things going behind the scenes that had been kept from all of them.

"He would have never put us in danger like that; Professor Ozpin cared about all of us and was there when we needed him," Ruby pressed adamantly while staring hard at her partner with Yang nodding in agreement. Looking at the sisters, Weiss sighed and nodded her head, conceding that they had a legitimate point despite her still having doubts.

After a few minutes of silence where each teen silently contemplated what was just said, they arrived at the Schnee estate. While the sisters had expected some grandiose house, they were not expecting a citadel like compound with a large white marble stone wall surrounding it. As they passed through the main entrance was a large metal gate, that had to be opened manually by a pair of armed guards in white uniforms, they were treated to the site of the main estate; a mix of a type of castle with its own towers and a typical mansion with stained glass windows to boot. In front of the large building was an enormous fountain as well as grass lawns that were presently covered in snow; which wasn't spewing any water presently. While Yang wasn't someone who marveled in buildings, though she did find Beacon impressive, the Schnee residence looked kind of ugly to her; as if someone were trying to mix two different styles into one. There was a small road that ran alongside the mansion and the car followed it passed it towards what was a smaller section of the estate housing a few small residences.

Weiss's place seemed to be the one the farthest from the mansion itself and looked more like a small house; even having its own garage in which the vehicle now parked in front of. Unlike the stone mansion, the simple house was only a single story and made of brown wood though there was a red brick chimney at the top of it; with smoke coming from its stack. It had a large porch with chairs set up and was protected by a canopy that extended farther out to cover the entirety of the space itself; thus one could sit outside without having to fear the elements coming down on them. Getting out of the car, both sisters could see that the estate had a good view of the city; though only the towers could be seen from where they were because of the walls. A few trees could be spotted at various parts of the estate but they lacked any leaves which made sense as well as them being pretty far from the wall. Weiss walked up to the front door and opened it as the other girls grabbed their things, Ruby getting hers while Yang was being worked on, following their friend inside.

Inside was rather simple and Ruby was almost reminded of their dorm room back at Beacon; though it was definitely Weiss. The carpet was white and like her office back at the company, it looked like it was cleaned regularly. The walls matched the color outside and had a few pictures hanging of Weiss at various stages of her life along with her with Winter as well as her mother; though there wasn't a single one of Morgan anywhere. The furniture was all a light grey with a small couch, a couple of cushioned chairs that had a black coffee table in front while facing a medium-sized flat screen television. It seemed that the front room, that also had a few bookcases full of reading material, just inside the house was connected with the kitchen though a rectangular table acted as the makeshift border; clean and spotless as the rest of the place. The kitchen itself was rather small though it had all the necessities needed to cook a good meal; if Weiss did her own cooking. From the kitchen was a hallway which the sisters assumed led to the rest of the house where the bedrooms lay.

"This is nice," Yang said as she looked around the place; reminding her a bit of home. While it looked like everything here was more pricy than the furniture back at Patch, it still seemed to fit Weiss but still was comfortable.

"Thank you; I'll show you the rooms and then maybe I can fix us something to eat," The teen stated and both sisters looked shocked; which Weiss raised an eyebrow at.

"What?" she inquired, now sounding annoyed; not getting what the big deal was.

"We just don't remember you ever cooking back at Beacon," Ruby said while her sister nodded in agreement. Come to think of it, neither teen could remember ever seeing Weiss in the kitchen unless it was to grab something already prepared.

"I'll have you know that I am quite the culinary chef when I want to be. The difference here is that I will cook something good and healthy for us tonight; not cookies and whatever junk food you are all used to," the white-haired teen chastised while leading them down the hall. Both sisters looked at one another again though this time with doubt on their faces; worried on what Weiss's definition of what healthy was.

Both Ruby and Yang had their own room; which were larger than they expected. While Weiss had the largest room, which was understandable given it was her place, only she had her own bathroom thus the sisters had to share the one in the hallway in between their rooms. The bathroom itself had a toilet, shower, and twin sinks; which was all white including the walls as well as the tiled floor. On the racks were two towels, yellow in color, and various soaps as well as other toiletries on the small shelf next to the sink. The rooms were rather bare though they each had a queen sized bed fully furnished with grey sheets, a large wooden dresser, a vanity, and matched the décor of the rest of the house. There was a television in each room as well as a place to charge their scrolls. After setting in and putting their things away, the two sisters used the bathroom and then headed to see what Weiss was doing. They were surprised to find her at the stove indeed cooking for them.

Which they now dreaded.

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	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **I want to continue thanking all those who are still following this story and things will start picking up now; starting with this chapter. Also, I want to point out that I do have another fic in the crossover section that is paired with Star Wars. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Yang was starting to get impatient.

As she and her two friends waited in the darkness of the warehouse, she fought the urge to start pacing.

It was in the middle of the night and they were in a more industrial and seedy part of the Atlas; which still existed despite the advancement of the kingdom. The building was empty of known activity and filled with pallets of can goods; owned by a grocery store and distributed to other parts of Remnant. The only illumination the building had were the night lights that would have provided support for any security cameras; which there were none. They had scouted out the location earlier to make sure it was clear of any threat and other than some cheap locks on the doors, there was nothing. The surrounding area was also quiet and empty though the girls had come across some gang activity at the edge if the district; dealing with black market stuff and other illegal activities. Since none of it was a real threat to the kingdom or linked to their enemies, the girls just left it alone for now. There were more than enough problems to deal with than petty criminals and their greed.

Weiss had gotten word from Neo a while ago that she had the information they needed; but that it had to be shared in person. While both Ruby and Yang had been instantly suspicious about having to do such a task, Weiss simply waved their concerns off. She claimed that Neo was firmly on their side and that there was no risk for this to be a trap; having met Neo secretly in the past with no issues. The teen was still somewhat vague on what her working relationship is with the other person, other than what she told them, and Yang was starting to wonder if there was something else going on behind the scenes. While she was more than appreciative for Weiss thinking ahead and doing something to combat their enemies, all this cloak and dagger stuff was too subtle to the blonde. At least Ruby and the rest of team JNR was out there and physically doing something though it seemed that they hadn't really accomplished anything.

"I don't like this," Yand said with obvious frustration in her voice. She had the urge to punch something, preferably with her new arm, but resisted it since it would draw too much attention.

"You don't have to; you just need to stay patient and not fly off the handle," Weiss stated, slightly irritated for some reason. She had been in a grumpy mood since this morning which Ruby and Yang had yet to determine why.

"This could still be a trap," Ruby suggested before her sister had a chance to react to her partner's words. The last thing they needed right now was to fight and get distracted by trivial things.

"We scouted out the location already and there is no one here besides us; until Neo shows up. Besides, she hates our enemies too much to betray us to them; it's going to be fine," the white-haired teen dismissed as she reached for her scroll to look at it.

"I still think you're are nuts for even working with her; this person tried to kill me and Ruby the last time we each encountered her," the blonde pointed out as she tapped her foot and fought the urge to activate her Ember Celica. She was surprised to learn that the second gauntlet had been recovered by Weiss at Beacon though damaged; which had gotten repaired.

"I take my allies where I can find them and we have too few right now with an enemy that has all the cards. This is War Yang and sometimes we don't have the luxury of working with people who are squeaky clean," Weiss chastised her teammate, now becoming even more annoyed with the blonde. Even though Ruby was an effective leader, Weiss sometimes believed that she truly was the smartest one on Team RWBY.

"As long as we don't forget what we are fighting for Weiss; which is for a peaceful Remnant," Ruby gently countered as she took a step forward to intervene. She was kind of put off by her partner's words and once again cursed herself for leaving the teen alone for so long.

"I haven't forgotten that in any way but we live in a real dangerous world that is filled with monsters other than Grimm. We all have to realize that now," the other teen argued back as she turned her head at a sudden noise. Before Ruby could respond, Neo came into view under one of the small lights in the corners of the building.

"You're late," Yang told the teen angrily as she got closer to view her supposed new ally. She was kind of shocked to see some visible scars on the younger girl's face despite her usual appearance; believing that she did not escape the griffons without injury.

Neo just glared at the blonde and then typed something into her scroll that went straight to Weiss's.

"Yes I know; what do you have for us?" Weiss asked the teen as her friends just looked at her in puzzlement.

"Neo can't speak so we communicate through our scrolls," the white-haired girl explained as their ally continued typing. Both sisters nodded though Ruby noted that Neo gave the occasional glare her way; which was understandable given their last encounter.

"What is she saying?" Yang asked after there was a few minutes of silence while it appeared that Weiss was reading whatever Neo sent her.

"She is saying that Adam Taurus is here in Atlas as well as other senior members of the White Fang. She also says that Blake was spotted entering the city through the sewers which she has contacts spy upon every day," Weiss answered though there was a bit more to it. Yang and Ruby exchanged glances and weren't sure how to take that.

"Well we knew that Blake was here already but it's kind of shocking that Adam is here; especially in the center of Atlas military power though it's not good and he is probably up to something big," the younger teen commented which drew a agreeing nod from her sister. While it was more or less hinted at during their meeting with the Colonel, having it solidified right now made things worrisome.

"But what? Atlas may be a bit weaker now but they have to be ready for any surprises that the White Fang try to throw at them," Yang said with the whole thing starting to give her a headache; also a surprisingly intelligent thing to hear from her. All she wanted to do was get to her partner before the Faunus did something incredibly stupid.

"Neo also says that the White Fang are bringing in large crates on something though they are using their own people to transport them; any attempt to get a closer look by her people results in something nasty," Weiss informed the two and Ruby noted the look Neo gave her partner when she mentioned that it had been Neo's people; as if it were more to that.

"Does she have anything useful? Seems to me that the petty criminal is becoming pretty useless without her boss around," the blonde said a she smirked at the pink-haired teen though there was a bit of resentment in her voice. Neo looked like she wanted to go at Yang given the tight grip she was giving her parasol; though she seemed to be holding her temper.

"Back off Yang; we know a lot more than we did before. Neo has provided us with all the locations the White Fang are using right now so we can check them out. I just need to get the details from her so you guys can scout outside in case she was followed," the white-haired girl practically ordered and both sisters looked at one another in surprise; also a little worried as well.

"I don't feel comfortable leaving you here alone with her while we are outside," Ruby told her friend, having a bad feeling about all of this. She really wished Weiss would let her in on the conversation so that her fears were alleviated.

"I'll be fine; we have a lot to do so I will see you guys in a few minutes," Weiss stated, waving her friend off as if she was dismissed. The sisters did not look happy about it but complied; leaving a few minutes later.

 **Any other orders boss?** Neo texted, looking slightly annoyed by the whole meeting with the sisters. She also seemed more submissive than she was when the other girls were in the room as if she were almost afraid of Weiss.

"Just make sure the shipments keep going to the lab; Fraken has new way of making the dust easier for me to use," the white-haired teen ordered and Neo nodded; texting another question.

 **Are you going to tell your friends about your new ability?** Parasol-wielding girl inquired, more than curious on that. Even though she didn't really work for Weiss Schnee on her own free will, she was subject to all the secret things the heiress was doing on the side.

"No; there is enough things to worry about and they would just ask too many questions. When the Blake situation is resolved, I will reveal what I can do and deal with Salem," Weiss stated as she smirked and turned her back to the other teen. She then held out her hand as she pulled a black dust crystal out of her skirt pocket and stared at it for a minute; putting back into her pocket and giving one last nod to her subordinate.

Weiss then left and found her friends outside waiting for her so that they could head back to the house to make further plans. There was a sudden sound of gunfire in the darkness and an explosion could be seen not too far away; flames erupting and lighting up the night sky. All three teens looked at one another before setting off to see what had happened; suspecting that their enemies were making a move of some kind. While Weiss used her glyphs to speed along Yang's jumping, Ruby was actually faster and left a stream of rose petals in her wake as she practically teleported ahead of them; reminding the two that she was getting faster with her semblance. By the time they arrived at the scene, which was in full chaos with the fire starting to spread, the younger teen was already surveying things with her Crescent Rose drawn. Even before they got there, Weiss had her Myrtenaster in her hand while Yang had activated her Ember Celica.

It was obvious that there was some sort of fighting going on given the dead bodies that were lying on the ground. In front was a large red-brick two storied warehouse that was on fire and a charred moving truck was sticking out from one of the walls; which might have been the reason for the fire in the first place. From the smell of the large black smoke rising up into the sky, Weiss was able to deduce that the truck had hit a cache of fire dust, which was extremely volatile unless properly refined, and caused the explosion; though what caused the crash was still up to debate. Moving to get a closer look before the authorities arrived, the teens were startled to see that not only human bodies lying dead but what appeared to be members of the White Fang. The human bodies were dressed in black suits while the Faunus were in their usual attire; masks and all. What really caught the girl's attention was that while the gang members seemed to have been stabbed, the White Fang members had been eviscerated; practically in pieces spread all over the ground. Bending down to examine one of the bodies, she looked at the slash marks which confirmed what she already suspected.

"Blake did this," was all that Yang said as she fought to bury the emotions that threatened to explode out of her. It was one thing to see a video of this on a screen; it was another to see it first hand with the stench of death accompanying it.

"Are you sure?" Weiss asked even though she pretty much was thinking the same thing. She was amazed that all the death Blake was dealing had yet to draw the Grimm in and clutched the black dust crystal in her other hand in case she needed it.

"Yeah," was all that the blonde said and one could hear the sadness in her voice; not to mention the regret. Both Ruby and her partner shared concerned looks before they were surprised by what happened next.

Running out of the warehouse's main entrance, which the metal doors looked to have been blown outwards, was a Faunus holding a rifle. Not even noticing the girls, he turned and fired back into the building while screaming obscenities as he did so. Besides looking charred slightly from running through the flames, his uniforms was cut up and visible cut marks could be seen quite clearly from the light of the fire. Blood dripped from his wounds and the mask that he normally would have worn was gone; the teen's not sure if he had taken it off or had been lost in the fight. He was so focused on what was happening in front of him that he never noticed that the three huntresses were moving closer to him with Yang taking the lead. While he was technically their enemy, stabbing the guy in the back was not something she would do; even if he was in a terrorist organization. There was also the chance that he might know something though it was obvious to every one of them on who he was firing at; they still needing to subdue him before he turned his attention towards the. As Yang was finally close enough to grab the guy, his weapon ran dry as a familiar face emerged from the burning building.

To say that Blake had changed was an understatement as she walked slowly towards the man in front of them. No longer sporting her bow covering her cat ears, she let her hair down with no apparent style though it looked unkempt and dirty. She was still wearing her usual attire back at Beacon and like her hair, her clothing looked messy with obvious stains of blood all over; not to mention the various tears and holes that lined the outfit. Speaking of blood, her Gambol Shroud, was dripping with blood as she slowly made her way towards them; the sheath was also dripping since it also had been used as well. She was focused solely on her prey and not yet to notice them which helped since they were too frozen in shock to really say anything. What really caught the girls off guard and sent chills up their spines was her expression; a form of seriousness and coldness that the Faunus had never displayed before. It was also her eyes that chilled them; her pupils were pitch black and dark veins were spreading out from her eyes.

"Blake," Yang whispered, her arms hanging at her sides and not sure what to think let alone do with her partner in front of her. For the first time in her life, the blonde almost wanted to run away from the carnage facing her.

Blake must have heard her because she suddenly looked at the three; her eyes focused more on the blonde than anything else. For a few long seconds, their eyes met as they simply stared at one another with the only sounds coming from the chaos around them. For a brief second, Blake's expression changed and Yang could see that her partner had recognized the blonde even though it had not been that long since they had last seen one another; her amber eyes replacing the black ones. It wasn't until the man ran that her murderous trait appeared as she turned towards her prey as he tried desperately to escape. Before he could get far though, the Faunus teen threw her blade; which the three team members had never seen her do before and had to be a new tactic from when they last fought with her by their side. The Gambol Shroud pierced through the back of the running individual's right leg and he went down screaming as pain roared through his body. Then by some unknown power, the blade ripped out of the appendage and back into Blake's hands as she made her way towards them.

"Blake! Stop it!" yelled Ruby, both as a plea and an order. The Faunus stopped and faced the scythe-wielding huntress with her face impassive.

Even though her sister seemed to be paralyzed by what was happening, the younger teen was not and she took a step towards her fallen friend with her Crescent Rose drawn as a precaution in case there was a fight. Weiss also heeded her partner's stance and had her own weapon ready, believing that violence was inevitable. While the two sisters were completely floored on what was going on with Blake, the white-haired teen had a good idea though she had kept it to herself since revealing it would have unearth some secrets she was keeping. Both partners took a step towards their teammate and Blake seemed to sense that they were going to interfere with her hunt, moving her body into a combat stance. Yang was still frozen and not sure what to do, her mind screaming to be ready to fight while her body refused to do so. While they had sparred back at Beacon, the two never fought against one another in a real fight; something they were just too close to do. Before anyone could make a move however, a bright light shine down from everywhere upon them; blinding them temporarily.

The Atlas Military had arrived.

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	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **Sorry this chapter took so long; I am not used to fight scenes and I hope you enjoy the one in this chapter. I continue to thank all those who still follow this story and those who become new readers with every update; also a special thanks to my reviewers. Again, all constructive criticism is appreciated and I really want to hear what you think about this story. Things will be happening fast in the upcoming chapters and expect some interesting twists as well as the return of some missing characters. Enjoy the chapter!**

It was Blake who made the first move.

While the others were temporarily paralyzed by surprise with the Atlas Military showing up, the Faunus leapt into action.

Apparently someone didn't get the memo that the Atlas bots were to be stored since that what was made up of the forces that surrounded the group; guns drawn and pointed at Blake. Before they could make a move however, she charged forward and slashed at an unnatural speed that was quick even for a Huntress. Three of the bots were down with their heads removed from their bodies and the others responded by firing their rifles at the Faunus; missing her completely and having their limbs removed much the same way. The spotlight remained on her as she went from machine to machine and there were shouts from the gunship overhead telling her to stop; not to mention the rest of the girls as well. All three weren't sure what to do and moved out of the way as more Atlas troops arrived at the scene in an attempt to surround Blake. The attempt was failing miserably as every bot that got close was sliced to pieces.

"What do we do?" Weiss practically yelled as they huddled behind an abandoned car and watched as more gunships appeared in the sky. There weapons were trained on their teammate and a vice was threatening to open fire if Blake didn't stand down.

"We have to stop her before Atlas hurts her; I think we might have to fight her," stated Ruby as she looked around the corner to see if there were more ground troops on the way. As expected, more bots were rushing forward and were firing at their friend though she was too quick for them.

"How? She has to be on something and is moving at your speed," Weiss pointed out as she watched their teammate dispatch another pair of machines. The Gunships were starting to spread out and she knew that they were about to strafe the scene.

"I don't know but we need to do something soon. What do you think Yang?" Ruby asked her sister who looked like she was out of it. All the blonde could do was watch her friend tear into the Atlas forces as if she were possessed.

"We need to get her out of here; especially before those gunships open fire. Weiss, do you remember what we did to blind Torchwick back when he was piloting that mech?" the blonde asked her teammate and she nodded as she got a good idea of what Yang had in mind. Ruby also picked it up and smiled as her partner readied an ice dust attack with her weapon.

"Freezerburn!" Ruby commanded as all three appeared in the spotlight; catching both the gunships and Blake by surprise.

Weiss slammed her Myrtenaster into the ground and created a layer of ice that spread all over the ground; causing the bots to lose their footing. Then, Yang leaped into the air and used her new arm to slam the ice while firing a shot; which created a mist that blanketed the area and made it hard for everyone to see. The bots and gunships were temporarily stunned by the tactic and the machines opened fire blindly even though they were hitting nowhere near them. The Gunships also were unable to act and just hovered in the sky as they communicated with one another; asking if any of them could see anything. Blake too advantage of the situation to flee and the rest of the girls followed, having spotted her in the fog. They ran as fast as they could as they struggled to keep up with the Faunus; leaving the confused gunships behind them. Moving from building to building, Blake seemed to move even faster as if she was unable to get tired and it was causing problems for the rest of the girls as they chased her.

"We're going to lose her," Weiss yelled as the Faunus jumped onto the roof of a warehouse and sped upon its top. The other three teens were still on the ground running along the side while looking up at her.

"You're going to have to catch her Yang! I'd do it but you're her partner; she'd listen to you," Ruby said to her sister as she looked over at Weiss and gave her a silent command; which the White-haired teen nodded in understanding.

Yang was about to ask what her sister meant when a glyph appeared at her feet which allowed her to move faster. Breaking away from the other two, she was propelled forward at great speed and moved a bit closer to her partner. The Faunus was back on the ground now and appeared to be heading towards a group of buildings that seemed to house the sewage treatment plant; where she could have possibly been hiding out. Using her Ember Celica, Yang fired herself forward as Weiss's glyph faded out and she made the decision that she had to stop her partner from escaping; thus she readied herself by lining her body up directly behind the other teen. When she was ready, Yang fired another blast and charged forward towards the back of her fleeing partner until she was only a foot away. She then fired again and slammed into the Faunus's back which caused the both of them to skid along the concrete ground. Both their aura's protected them from being seriously injured while they rolled. When they stopped, they were only a few feet away from one another; being this close for the first time in almost a year.

"Stop; we need to talk," Yang said as she stood up and stared at the other teen; who was also up and staring back at her. The black veins were still visible and the dark pupils looked so disturbing up close that the blonde had to fight not to turn away.

"Go away," was all that Blake said in a voice that seemed unnatural and not her own; as if she had been taken over by something else. The Faunus raised her weapon and Yang did the same; as if they were going to fight.

"No; we need to talk about this and I am not letting you leave until you come back with me," Yang said to her partner in a serious tone; getting into a fighting stance. While she didn't want to fight Blake, she had a feeling that there was no choice.

Her feeling turned out to be right as her partner rushed forward and swung her Gambol Shroud in an effort to slash at her. Yang met the blade with her equipped arm and the clang of metal could be heard in the night sky. As they fought, they were alone with Remnant's broken moon in the sky above them; the only sounds being of them. The air had a chill to it and both ignored it as fist met blade; oblivious to everything around them. While Yang was fighting to keep her emotions under control, realizing that this fight was actually happening between them, Blake looked like she was not conflicted in the least; her eyes almost seeming dead. Doing a round a house kick to the Faunus's side, the blonde tried to throw her off balance in an attempt to move past her defenses. Blake seemed to take the hit however and returned a kick of her own, which slammed hard against Yang's own side. Her aura took the hit but she could not take any more of them since Blake's hits had an enhanced strength to them; her close combat skill having been improved since the last time they saw one another. She believed that Weiss was right; Blake had to be on something to be able to do all this.

Yang knew that she had no choice but to treat this like a real fight with a real opponent; especially since her partner was already doing this. With the way that Blake was swinging her blade, it was as if she were really trying to kill Yang and had no problem doing so; or at least that was the blonde's opinion. It was by luck that Weiss had decided to improve her gauntlets with a more durable armor, more so to prepare for Adam again, thus she was able to meet the metal of Blake's Gambol Shroud with her own fists without it cutting into it. Deflecting another slash with her right fist, the blonde swung her left right into the Faunus's chest and slammed into her aura; causing Blake to stagger back. Taking advantage of the situation, Yang charged forward with another swing and hit her partner again which pushed her back even more; but did not cause her to fall. If the situation weren't so serious, Yang would be amazed on how anyone could take her hits and still stand. Blake seemed to take the hits with no problem and she rushed forward with another swing; this time forcing Yang to jump back.

As they fought, Yang managed to get a few more blows to her partner and Blake just seemed to take them with no apparent damage to her aura. The blonde however was starting to feel the strain since it had been a while she had been in a real fight, sparring in Weiss's gym only helping so much. Even when facing her father in practice matches was nothing compared to this; especially since it really did appear that Blake didn't care whether she hurt her friend or not; which made things worse for Yang. It was breaking her heart to see her friend like this and she could not feel but betrayal once again; feeling that the Faunus was abandoning everything they had together. She suddenly felt a sense of anger and her eyes flared red, her punches getting fiercer against the other teen. Backhanding the Gambol Shroud away with her left fist, Yang went for Blake's face once she was open; managing to connect with her right hand. Since in her anger she had thrown everything she had into the hit, there was a horrible cracking sound and it was as if she had broken her friend's skull. Blake went down hard and lay there silently as if she were dead; Yang just staring down at the body.

When her rage died down, Yang could only stare in horror at what she had just done; until Blake started to get up. The blonde just stood there as the Faunus got up and stared back at her; life in her eyes returning. Instead of the black eyes, they were now yellow and the veins seemed to vanish; making her face look natural again. As they stood there, both were breathing pretty heavily as the strain of their fight started to make itself known to their bodies; whatever power Blake was using seemingly dissipated. From what Yang could see, emotions were starting appear on her partner's face; from sadness to guilt thus even she was starting to feel regret; wondering how it came to this. It was then that the blonde could see the Faunus she partnered with who became her best friend and not the monster that was killing these last few months. After standing there in silence after a minute, it was Yang who decided to make the first move and find out what had happened to her friend.

"What is going on?" Yang asked gently, taking a step forward towards the cat Faunus. While she had another question in mind, this one she felt would have been the best way to start.

"Just go away and leave me; this isn't your fight," was all that Blake said forcibly, almost pleading, taking a step back. She was looking around as if she were looking for a way to escape and Yang saw that; preparing for a possible intercept.

"This is my fight; in fact, this is all of our fight as Team RWBY. We need to know what is going on with you and how you are doing this; I need to know what has happened with my partner. I want to know why you abandoned me; I needed you," Yang practically snarled at her friend as anger bubbled up to the surface once again. Blake looked surprised by the answer and her mouth fell, as if she weren't sure how to answer.

She then was staggered back as a bullet round slammed into her; blowing off the Faunus's right arm.

Yang turned to see a group of seven Atlas bots stand there with their weapons raised; with one's weapon having a trace of smoke coming from the barrel. Shocked, the blonde turned back to her fallen friend who lay there on the ground with her arm not too far away. Clenching her fists, she screamed in rage and charged forward at the machines in a fury not felt in a great while; catching the machines off guard as they did with Blake. The first one went down with a right hook to its head, the piece of metal going flying. As their weapons then trained on the blonde, another bot went down as it exploded from a fist to its chest; pieces flying everywhere. The rest of the machines opened fire and Yang dodged their shots easily, firing off a few of her own; which took a two more in a spectacular explosion. There were three left and the blond leaped into the air and brought her left fist down which caused a slight shockwave that sent two more machines flying; both shattering as they fell to the ground. She had saved the bot who shot her friend for last and she rushed forward in a fury, meeting the shots head on and deflecting them with her aura. She finally reached the machine and proceeded to pound in the tiny pieces; taking out all of her rage upon it.

"Freeze!" commanded a voice and the blonde turned to see that Atlas had sent in the regular ground forces; soldiers in their armored attire. There was about sixteen of them with their weapons pointed right at Yang.

Before anyone could make a move however, there was a stir from Blake as she rose to her feet; her eyes once again black with the veins returned. Everyone could only stare as she walked over to her arm and picked it up before facing the group; giving all of them a cold stare. Then, which really caught everyone by surprise, she took her arm and somehow reattached it to her body; the group watching as the flesh and bone reconnecting until it was as it was. All the soldiers then pointed their weapons at the Faunus while looking nervously at their Captain to give an order; which he could not since he was unsure what to do. A pair of gunships appeared overhead and shined their lights on the area with their weapons now trained on Blake as well; forcing her against a stone wall of the building they were now in front of. No one made a move as Yang struggled to come up with something to do before they opened fire again.

What happened next caught everyone one by surprise with the Faunus creating many shadow clones of herself; ten in total. As they all took off running, Yang tried to see which one was real as the Atlas military opened fire on the ones heading at them; cutting them down quite easily before they made contact. Yang managed to spot three that had escaped but there were Atlas troops blocking her from giving chase though she wasn't sure which one to chase after. Usually she was good at picking up on her partner's clones but this time they stood looked so real that it was just hard to do. When Blake was gone, all the solders then pointed their weapons at Yang and she readied herself for a possible fight with them; consequences be damned. Before anyone could act though, Taiyang appeared on the scene by leaping in front of his daughter in order to protect her; his gauntlets activated and in a fighting stance. Qrow also appeared and has his weapon in full scythe mode; coming to his teammates side ready for a fight. Soon Ruby and Weiss were there with their weapons drawn though they went to Yang's side; not sure what to do.

"Stand down," ordered Winter as she appeared on the scene; coming from behind the soldiers suddenly. They complied and lowered their weapons but things were still tense after what had just happened; Yang breathing heavily as the rush of things started to die down with her.

"Are you okay?" Taiyang asked his eldest daughter as he turned to face her; noting the conflict of emotions upon her face. She nodded though she was lying since she was definitely not okay; especially given what had just happened.

"How did you find us?" Ruby asked her Uncle as he looked over at Winter; who was giving orders to the Atlas troops to search the area. While it was pointless since Blake was long gone, it gave them a chance for privacy.

"You girls seem to forget that we taught you how to be Huntresses before you went to Beacon; thus we've been following you," answered Qrow with a smirk at Weiss since she was the one who said they were not being followed.

The white-haired teen just glared at the man and contemplated going over to talk with her sister to see if they were in trouble. Given that they were recently in a military fight of some kind as well as witnesses, it was expected that they would be detained. Already Weiss was thinking up a story to tell her father since he was going to hear about this and not be happy with her; him still angry after learning of the betrayal of one of his people. She also had a real good idea of where Blake had gotten her new power though she had no way of finding out unless HE came to speak to her; which was always unscheduled. Before she could walk over to speak to Winter, Colonel Derricote appeared on the scene with General Ironwood; joining Winter with the Atlas troops and speaking with them. While the rest of the group could only glare at the man, with Ruby and Weiss starting to understand what just happened, Yang was seeing red and suddenly activated her Ember Celica again.

She then raised her fists and prepared for a charge at the man.

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	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **Want to apologize for taking so very long to update this story as well as the shortness of the chapter but I was rather stuck on where I wanted to go with it; though I have been inspired and will be incorporating several plot points that had been originally intended for another fic. I also want to thank the reviewer who pushed me to update since I had this chapter partially done for a few weeks now. The next one will not take so long; please leave me feedback!**

 **FYI, I am looking for a Beta since my original is busy with school as of late; leave me a PM if you are interested!**

Weiss waited patiently outside her father's study.

It was late and she would have been normally in bed by now if it weren't for the evening's events.

It was lucky for Yang that her father and uncle managed to restrain the blonde before she could attack the Colonel; forcibly holding her down after noticing what she was about to do. While the scene went unnoticed by a few Atlas solders as well as Derricote, Winter managed to see what her teammate had nearly done and ordered the family out of the area before any more problems arose. Weiss was glad that her sister managed to accomplish that given that things could have gotten complicated and there would have been a risk that Yang would have been jailed by the Atlas military; even if it had been warranted. It was more than apparent that the Colonel had been monitoring their progress from when they left the office; waiting to make his move once contact with Blake had been established. It seemed though that the man had underestimated the Faunus given that she had cut their forces to pieces; even surviving a direct attack which left more questions for the group. Yang had also did some damage but so far there was no calls for her arrest; yet.

As for Weiss, she now had to deal with the aftermath; specifically the fallout with her father for going behind his back. Though Winter wanted to soften the blow and offered to hold her for questioning, Weiss had declined and simply left in the limo her father had sent for her. Before heading here, she had checked in with Ruby who was back at the cottage while her sister was still with the rest of her family; just in case Atlas came for her. While her partner wanted to go with her when it came time to face her father, Weiss told Ruby to rest since it had been a rough night for the both of them. So she now waited outside her father's study in the deepest part of the estate; a place where only a Schnee or those most trusted could enter. She knew he was angry and there was a chance that something bad could happen tonight; which had happened in the past once there was no one around to see it. Her father had a temper and there had been more than a few times where he had lashed out at the younger Schnee; always making up for it afterwards in some way. Though Weiss resented the man, she no longer let it get to her since things were now different; her being more powerful than the weak willed teen from before Beacon.

"My lady? Your father is ready for you," said her father's secretary; a young woman with an attire that was a little too revealing in Weiss's opinion. While her father never dallied with his staff, even after the death of her mother, he still liked to indulge in eye candy on occasion.

"Thank you," was all the teen said in a blank tone as she stood up from her seat and headed through the open door. The secretary closed the door behind her and left the two of them alone in the room; giving her a sympathetic smile.

Her father's study was practically a shrine to the man's ego; not a single spot that didn't glorify Morgan Schnee in some way. Not only were there portraits of him everywhere, seeming to make him out to be some sort of higher power, but there were trophies of his accomplishments as well; some even being possessions from his former rivals once he had crushed them. The floor was made up a fancy and expensive red rug while the walls were white; a rare oak that had been imported from Mistral. At the center of the room, in front of a few monitors that her father had on in order to pay attention to world events was a massive desk where the man sat. The desk was a golden brown, parts of it being actual gold, and was currently clear of paperwork which was a rare event' thus proving that everything was focused on the teen right now. The room was barely lit from the single desk lamp next to her father with the overhead lights dimmed; probably for dramatic effect. The man himself was in his normal business attire and stared at Weiss as she walked in; his hands clasped in front of the lower part of his face.

"Explain yourself," he ordered in a tone that told Weiss that he was truly furious with her; it being deep and dripping with venom. The teen had planned for that however and already knew what she was going to say.

"I did what was necessary for our family and the SDC," was all that Weiss said in a firm but respectful tone; giving the man a blank look. That caught her father by surprise as evident but the widening of his eyes and him lowering his hands; having expected her to give excuses

"How is going off on this little escapade with your lowly friends necessary to this family?" the man demanded to know; almost glaring at the teen. While she bristled at the fact that he had called her friends "lowly", Weiss kept her feelings in check and continued on.

"Our company has been harassed and besieged by the White Fang for years without any help from the Atlas Military; by trying to get to Blake first, I assured that she remains free to do what she is doing," Weiss pointed out to her father and Morgan gave her a bored look; as if it was a trivial thing.

"So what if that filthy Faunas is free; what concern is it to us?" Morgan said, rolling his eyes and thinking lesser of his daughter. Again, Weiss had expected that and spoke up once again.

"That Faunus is killing members of the White Fang; making sure that there are less of them that we have to deal with. She is doing what people we have paid to do and failed; thus she is an asset that we should utilize. Why should we let the Atlas Military, the very same who didn't warn us that we had a traitor in our midst, lock up Blake when she doing us a favor; for free," the teen pressed and she could see that he was considering his words. It was true that her father had spent millions on private military companies to deal with the White Fang; never getting anything in return for his investments.

"I do admit you have a point; but that doesn't excuse you for going off on your own," Morgan said; a little less harshly now. He was still upset with her though he no longer seemed as angry as before.

"I had to do it; by getting to Blake first, I could find out if she knew of any more traitors in our company," stated Weiss and she could see that her father was once again surprised by her words; smiling inwardly.

"You think there is more?" he asked, somewhat shocked by what his daughter was proposing since he was still fathoming that there had even been one.

"For all we know; you say it constantly that only members of our family can be trusted in the SDC. The Atlas Military kept that from us so who knows what more they are keeping secret; not caring if we get hurt in the process," pointed out the Huntress; pressing her advantage with her father since she now controlled the field. Her father's ego and love for his Empire was his weakness; thus she was now using that against him.

"So what do you propose? I doubt that you helped that Faunus purely for the good of our family's legacy," Morgan countered though he did have to admit that his daughter made some good points. He was angry that things were kept from him given all he had contributed to Atlas all these years; feeling a sense of betrayal.

"Of course not; but that is besides the point. All that matters is my results which I have given you for almost a year now. I turned around the Research Department to make it profitable again and I was the one who made sure that our company found new ways to harvest Dust. I am going to do this and make sure that Remnant becomes safe again," Weiss forcefully said to her father with a firmness that she had never mustered to the man before. He just looked at her for a minute and actually looked like he was unable to stand up to his daughter; as if he understood her point.

"Fine; but if I see any threat to this family or the SDC, I will rein you in; forcibly if needed so make sure you do not fail. You're dismissed," the man said to her as he waved her off; which Weiss nearly nodded to and simply left. She ignored the secretary on the way out and kept her face blank as she moved through the mansion; disregarding any household staff she encountered until she found herself outside and alone.

She walked until Weiss was near her cottage; a voice speaking up which disturbed her from her thoughts.

"Well that was entertaining; you've come quite far since our last conversation," stated the mysterious man as he stepped out of the shadows. Dressed in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, his black eyes simply stared into her blue ones as she turned to face him.

"Are you responsible for Blake?" she demanded to know, ignoring his banter and practically glaring at the being. Unlike the last few times, she was angrier at the individual than intimidated; though she was quite aware of his power.

"If I was?" he inquired back; as if it didn't matter and it was something trivial; which irked the teen even more.

"You didn't need to do that to her; I was handling things," Weiss said to the man as she clenched her fists, using her anger to warm herself in the cold. The broken moon of Remnant glowed in the sky and the air was quite chilled.

"And I continue to be quite impressed with you my dear Weiss; but I still needed to hedge my bets since you are only one person. Think of Ms. Belladonna as a simple tool to further our goals," the man put forth as he moved closer to the teen. Though she wanted to step back, Weiss just stood there and he extended his arm and brushed her cheek with his finger.

"And am I just a "tool"? Is what I am able to do now just something that will make me just like her," inquired the Schnee-heiress forcefully, knowing that her tone put her at great risk. While she had yet to see the being angry, Weiss was smart enough to know it would not be pleasant once it did happen.

"You my dear are not a tool; you are an investment that has the potential to be more than any of my other servants could be. Ms. Belladonna is merely a means to an end is only required to fulfill a particular part in all this," informed the man as he seemed to not be put off my Weiss's interrogation. The way he blended into the darkness was chilling; though Weiss herself had long gotten used to it.

"I will have to save her too then; I won't let whatever you did to her be permanent," stated the teen firmly as she ignored the chill down her spine at being touched by the powerful as well as dark being. Everything she was doing was to the betterment of her friends; which was what she told herself everyday as she experimented with her new gifts.

"Of course; this means that you just need to work harder at accomplishing our overall goal. I will admit though that having your friends here is a great motivator so I look forward to seeing more of your team at work. Good luck," said the individual with a smile before vanishing from the scene as if he had not even been there. Though she wanted to let off an angry scream, Weiss just sighed and headed inside the cottage.

Truthfully, she shouldn't have been all that surprised that her benefactor would have another asset in place; though she would have never had suspected it to be Blake. While Weiss was becoming more and more powerful everyday with the Black Dust and what it could do, she was nowhere near what she needed to do; thus she needed to put more hours in her training. The problem with that was that she would have to juggle that with coordinating with her team now that they were in Atlas; especially with the White Fang in the Kingdom as well. Her own people were reporting that the organization was moving substantial resources into Atlas thus they had to have something big planned; though she had no idea on what it was. A part of her wondered if her little secret had gotten out to their enemies; thus Adam was here to stop her. Her benefactor had assured Weiss however that everything she was doing had been kept secret from those who mattered; that included Salem.

Ruby was asleep on the couch; more than likely exhausted from the night's events. Her red cloak lay over her form like a makeshift blanket while her head was situated on one of the small couch pillows; a blue one with gold trim. Weiss walked up to the sleeping teen and sat down on the edge of the chair opposite from her, watching Ruby in the dark. During their recent conversations, the younger girl had mentioned that it had been a while since she had slept in an actual bed this comfortable; having to share with Nora a few times when they stayed in cheap motels in Haven. It felt good that she was able to provide her partner with a more stable living arrangements even though they were only temporary; the teen probably needing to leave once the situation with Blake was resolved. On one hand, Weiss would be sad to see her partner go and longed to join the younger teen on her quest; but given what she was now doing in secret to all those around her, it might be a benefit for Ruby to be away from her. Truthfully, she rather be alone in this new venture of hers since she believed that the others just would not understand; even if it were all for them.

Leaving Ruby alone to her sleep, Weiss headed back outside into the chill of the night air; walking away from the residence. Given the vastness of the Schnee property, it didn't take the teen long to be in a place that was completely isolated from everything else; even the intense security network that the place employed wasn't active here. It helped that it lie in the center of a group of trees that blossomed greatly in the springtime but were almost free of leaves in the current weather; though they were so grouped together that they created a rather thick wall of branches that kept it so separate from the outside area. She had discovered it some time ago when exploring the property and made it hers; instructing the staff that it was to be left alone no matter what. Since her father never bothered with any décor outside the mansion, it was easy to get her way on this place. Inside her little enclave was a small pool of a black liquid, which had once held nothing, that looked eerily still in the moonlight from above; dead grass lining the shore of the pool. Leaning down, Weiss took off her shoes and socks, then walked up to the edge of the pool and took out the black dust crystal; absorbing it as she crushed it into her hands.

She then let loose a flurry of negative emotions that she had been holding back for some time now.

For many months, Weiss had been isolated and alone at the Schnee residence; under the careful watch of her father. Though she continued to train, she hated that there was nothing she could do to help in the crisis that was haunting Remnant. A few months ago, her father decided to test his chosen heir and gave her the task of turning around a section of the SDC to make it more worthwhile again; which she was able to do while creating her own powerbase. Truth be told, the teen despised her father and wanted to fix all the problems he created; the situation with the Faunus workforce a big priority. It was also during this time that she had discovered the power of Black Dust and what it was able to do; the secret lying in her family's ability to handle dust as part of their semblances. That was when her new benefactor appeared and gave her the secret to using the Black Dust even more; Weiss entering his service for mutual benefit. The Huntress wanted to help her world and he needed a replacement for another treacherous servant; thus she was now on the path she couldn't escape.

The pool of black liquid stirred and something began to emerge from it; a large griffon that clawed its way onto the shore. Weiss stared at it as it moved towards her, unafraid and did not even draw her weapon; having left her Myrtenaster back at the cottage. After a few seconds, it was directly in front of her and its mouth was gaping down at her, as if it were ready to lean down and engulf her. Still she stood there and simply stared at it; even with her negative emotions practically making her a target not to mention feeding it. Weiss then reached up and used her hand to rub the Grimm's fur; its mouth closing and bowing before the Huntress. Giving it a mental command, the griffon laid down as the teen continued to stroke it as if it were her pet and she smiled as it obeyed easily. Soon, another Grimm emerged from the pool, a small deathstalker, and it too treated her as if it were her servant; simply standing still as she moved passed in to step into the pool of liquid. More Grimm came forth and they soon crowed the small enclave; made up of many types such as beowolves, ursas, and a nevermore. They just watched her as the Weiss took in the liquid into her being; bowing as they knew her as their Queen.

Salem would be replaced.

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	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Still don't own it

 **I've been sick as well as been busy with work as of late; thus why there have been some delays with the updates to my two stories; as well as why this chapter might seem short. I can't promise when this will be updated but it will never be abandoned. This chapter will feature some pretty heavy AU since we don't really know much about the relationship between the two major characters mentioned/seen in this chapter so please indulge me a little. I am also still looking for a Beta so feel free to message me if you are interested!**

The old wizard opened his eyes.

As he lay in his bed, he could see that the morning light of the sun shining through the window above where his head lay.

As much as he knew he should get up, desiring a cup of coffee, he really didn't want to in all honesty. Though he had healed from his injuries a few months ago, his body still felt stiff and was unable to move properly; even when he tried to do simple chores around the small cabin where he currently lived. As he lay there on the simple straw bed and single quilt over his ancient form, his stomach growled; reminding him that his body still needed sustenance despite his powers maintaining his body. Sighing, the old man got up and yawned as he tried to stretch his old bones; they creaking as he did so. After another minute of sitting in bed, he stood up and walked barefoot over to the simple bathroom to do his routine; inside the old real modern furnishings in the entire place. After he was done, he moved slowly out and headed to get something to eat.

Other than the bathroom, the rest of the cabin was really just one old shack to anyone viewing from the outside. The kitchen, sleeping area, and dwelling area shared one space thus everything was interconnected; thus he never had to walk far. The wooden floors were dirty but smooth as were the walls and the ceiling never leaked; though it would seem like it given its condition which appeared less than stellar. There was a fireplace that lie in front of an old wooden rocking chair that had seen better days but still sturdy; heat still emanating from the night before. In the kitchen area was an old metal stove and the sink was made of cast iron; a pump required to bring water from the well below the house. There was an old icebox full of food as well as numerous cupboards well stocked for his use; one of which he opened to get the already grounded coffee for him to make. There was a brown medium sized table with a few empty dishes on it as well as three chairs pushed in; though only one was really used.

The window in front of the sink area showed nothing but trees as he pumped some water into a simple coffee pot; which he then placed on the stove. Opening the metal door, he grabbed a log from the container in front of it and placed it inside; lighting the fire with a match. While he could have lit it using a little of his power, he really had no desire to; instead relying on more primitive means. With the fire lit, he waited for the water to boil while retrieving a cup from the cupboard next to the ice box. While there, he grabbed some bread and cheese from it and snacked on them as he waited for the liquid to finish. After a few minutes, the old man was pouring it into the cup and he then went over to the chair to sit down; sitting there in the darkened room while sipping his coffee. While there was a candle stick sitting on the table that could have given him more light, he rather preferred the darkness at the moment. He planned to light the candle so that he could read later.

Once he was done eating, he had a tingling in his body and there was an urge to walk over to the window next to the front door; which gave him a view of the outside of the cabin and the rest of his property. Not understanding why, the old man did so and got up from the table, leaving his empty dishes and looking outside; his eyes widening at what he saw. He stood there at the window as he saw that there was a person standing in front of his abandoned garden; a female with her back to him. For a second, she didn't look real and he thought he was imagining things; especially since this place could not be found by anyone unless he let them. The old man went to a lot of trouble to make sure this place was secluded from the outside world; having created it so that he could be left isolated from the troubles that plagued Remnant. A few months ago, he had retreated to this safe haven after a battle that left him injured for some time; allowing him time to heal and reflect. For someone to breach his enclave was a remarkable feat, not since the four sisters centuries ago, and he was more than astounded at the moment. Thus he went against his better judgment to venture outside; which he hadn't done in months.

The door was a little hard to open and it squeaked as it did so; the hinges needing oil and not had been used in some time. Stepping outside for the first time in a while, he felt the warmth of the sun onto his body as the fresh air hit his senses. Taking a deep breath, he grabbed his walking stick and moved slowly from the old wooden porch and closer to his guest; who had a familiarity to her. Wearing a long white gown that went to her feet, her skin was pale and had long golden hair; as if it were made of the precious metal. Turning to face the old man as she had long sensed his approach, her gentle smile touch his heart and she almost seemed like she was something out of legend; also radiating a power greater than his. It took only a few seconds for the old man to know who this person was and he sighed as he now knew what was to come; hoping that it would never since it meant that he could no longer hide here. When one was a servant of the Light, there was no running from your duties.

"Hello Ozpin," the woman said, her voice full of life and purity that filled his old heart with warmth. He struggled to contain his emotions has he felt her power; most of them being regret and slight shame.

Professor Ozpin's appearance had changed a great deal over the course of time since the Battle of Beacon; to the point where he would not be recognized at first glance. His clothing was grimy and disheveled; a mix of patched up grey trousers and a long blue shirt that was completely out of character when he had been Headmaster; also sporting a pair of brown boots that had seen better days though they were intact. Instead of walking around with his cane that had become a part of his trademark attire, having been left back at Beacon after escaping from Cinder, and he walked around with an old wooden stick; which could technically be used as a weapon. It was his facial features that made him look just as old as he really was; right down to the scraggly beard and long hair that went down past his shoulders; slightly unwashed. His glasses were practically antiques and showed the casual observer on how tired his eyes really were; which matched the rest of his demeanor. All in all, Ozpin was the pure representation of an old hermit shacking it up in his cabin out in the middle of nowhere.

"I was hoping that I had been forgotten," Ozpin admitted as he sighed sadly and looked around the area; seeing no one else but them. He preferred that there were no other living things in this place since it would only remind him of what he was hiding from.

"My dear Wizard, you could never be forgotten given all the great work you have done; though the Light is troubled by what you are doing presently," she stated; both in a loving but convicting way. He winced at her words since there was truth to them; he was indeed hiding.

"I am recuperating; it was everything I had just to escape here after facing Cinder and her stolen powers," Ozpin argued as he leaned heavily on his walking stick; remembering how he almost died at Beacon Tower. He had underestimated on how fast Cinder learned her new-found as well as stolen powers.

"You healed some time ago Wizard; you are now where you were when you started on this path for the Light. What you are really doing is hiding and by doing so, you are turning your back on those who willingly followed you in try to protect the people of Remnant. Even now, they continue to fight in your name; thinking that you have fallen," chastised the Celestial Being in a firm tone; speaking the brutal truth to the man. Her pure white eyes gazed at him and almost seemed to stare into his very soul; causing Ozpin to feel greatly intimidated.

"Fine, you are right; I am physically alright. I just don't see how I can help anyone since it is obvious that every time I try, I end up failing. Maybe I should just let Qrow, Glynda, and Ironwood handle it from now on," stated the Ex-Headmaster in a defeated tone of voice; feeling the weight of things upon him.

"You were defeated; that is true. But you are also part of a war that has gone on for a long time and against an enemy who is your equal; thus losses are to be expected. What is important is that you keep fighting to protect those who need it and not hide while letting others do what is needed," countered the woman though one could hear the sympathy in her voice as well as understanding. It was hard for Ozpin to meet her eyes since he knew her words to be truthful in every regard; a voice in the back of his mind saying the exact same things the last couple of months.

"But I have failed so many times now that I just can't stand seeing any more people die for my bad decisions. Summer Rose, Amber, Pyrrha Nikos, and so many are now dead because I underestimated Salem; and now she is the one who has the upper hand. I've made so many mistakes that I don't think I can stand to lose any more people," Ozpin told the Celestial Being and the defeat in his voice was more than evident.

"The fact that you took those deaths seriously and regret their losses in precisely why you are still a great man Ozpin; even if you don't see it. You understand that their lives were precious and were not just throwing them away in this war. It is time you recognize that and go back to those who see you as their leader; this is the command of the Light," ordered the woman and she seemed to glow; radiating a power that brought life to everything around them.

"I don't know how much longer I can fight; I feel so old," admitted the Wizard as he felt some of his power returning. The last time an agent of the Light came to him, she had provided some of his powers back after giving it away to the original maidens.

"I know and the Light understands; but things are now more serious and thus you have no choice. The Darkness has physically manifested on Remnant and is now directly participating in events there," informed the being and that caused Ozpin to do a double take; his mouth almost gaping.

"It can't do that; there are rules," Ozpin said as his mind worked through what was just said to him. As someone who was a few centuries old, he knew all about the beings that ran the universe and the powers they exhibited.

"The rules put forth by the Creator states that the Darkness cannot use the powers of the Abyss to directly interfere unless someone foolishly attacks it; which it is following. What it is doing is corrupting one of your students so that she can be a new servant while deceiving another into using a power that is destroying her very Soul. Salem has defied her Master for too long and it is now decided to act; thus you are now needed more than ever since only you know what is at stake. Those who follow you need to know what has entered the battlefield and those two girls need to be saved from the corrupting influence of the Abyss; or their souls will be lost forever," the Celestial Being told the Wizard; stressing how dire the situation was.

Only Ozpin knew, having kept certain things from his most loyal followers, that he and Salem were merely solders in a very old war; one that has spanned the universe for eons. At one time, both he and the Queen of the Grimm had been merely spectators as well as oblivious to the whole thing; with Salem just an ordinary Witch who loved to practice magic such as he. They had been friends and even lovers at one time; both focusing their futures on studying the mystic arts while ignoring the rising spark of humanity on Remnant. However, while Ozpin grew enthralled with humans and their potential, especially after becoming a slight disciple of the light, Salem grew to despise them because of various reasons; their threats to magic as well as the fact that they posed a risk to the planet itself. While this had led to many arguments between the two, they still remained friends though the distance between the two continued to grow with the Witch beginning to focus on darker forms of magic.

When Salem decided that Humanity needed to be exterminated, she committed a universal sin and managed to wipe the race out in a spell that shattered the moon and left its mark on Remnant; the Grimm being a direct result of that very spell. It was Ozpin who brought both Humans and Faunus forth as well as left the gift of Dust to them to fight the newly created Grimm; which was the result of the evil spell. This broke his bond with Salem and created her hatred of him; which the Darkness used to bind her to the Abyss. It was then that the Old Wizard became a full servant of the Light and fought a secret war with his former friend through the years; spending his great powers to give the people of Remnant tools to fight the Grimm. He wasn't the only one to provide those tools however; those who bore Silver Eyes were ancient warriors of the Light; seeded in humans by Celestial Beings to not only fight the Grimm but other forces of the Abyss. Summer and Ruby Rose were part of that ancient lineage thus were key to protecting Remnant; though Ruby had yet to fully master her potential.

"Salem has always let her hatred of humanity be her first priority over serving anyone; it's always been her problem. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that the Darkness would want to replace her though it is disturbing that one of my students is being groomed towards taking her place," the Wizards stated and one could hear the gravity in his tone of voice; even the sorrow since he had always considered his students like his children.

"Which is why you can no longer hide here in this sacred place; you are needed now Ozpin more than ever and the Light commands you to rise up to fight once again," ordered the Celestial Being with an authority that no one could turn down.

"I feel so tired but I will try; I think I got some fight left in me," the old wizard stated though he had to admit that the battle with Cinder still left him winded. Fighting the Fallen Maiden was far more complex that dealing with one of Salem's creatures.

"That is good but you will need the strength of the Light for this coming battle; thus I am here to present a gift," said the woman, holding out a white orb for him to take that glowed and radiated great power.

"I've never felt worthy of such power; I don't think I should take it," Ozpin said with some resolute in his voice. Though he used and wielded power in order to protect those who needed it, the old man never felt comfortable using it unlike Salem; having the full belief that it can corrupt even those with the purest of intentions.

"You must; the Darkness has provided his victims with powers that have not been used on Remnant in eons. Auras, Dust, and Semblances are not enough to face the Old Magic that is now making a reappearance so it is up to those who are wielders of the strength of the Light to come forth to be its champions. You have a good heart Ozpin so do not be afraid," the being said in a gentle voice as she handed the Headmaster the orb; which he took. Power surged through his body and a great light surged through the enclave; encompassing everything.

When it vanished, the old wizard found himself facing the broken tower of Beacon; crawling with Grimm. It was night out and the ruptured moon was high in the sky; shining down upon the fallen campus. Regaining his wits, he was surprised that the Representative of the Light, possibly even being the manifestation of it, dumped him in this place without him first getting used to the power surging through his body. While he was still weary of using it, he did feel a warmth and purity that came with the gift so he felt a little better; though he knew he needed to be careful since those who abused it found themselves being abandoned by it. All around him, he was haunted by what used to be a beautiful school for potential hunters; now empty except for the beasts that roamed it. He had built this school from scratch and had been brought joy by the students that he had presided over; especially those who went on to be the very best at protecting the people from the Grimm. Standing in the middle of the quad, the beasts had sensed his presence and moved towards him; probably communicating with their Queen about his intrusion to their gain.

With a determined look on his face and the walking stick in hand; Ozpin moved to take back his school.

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